Home Our colleagues Interview with Marlen Schäfer

Marlen Schäfer (May 2008) - staff exchange scheme

Interview with Marlen Schäfer, Manager Marketing Services, Messer Group, Germany

“The courage to overcome frontiers is decisive. Only then can you forge links that will last a lifetime.” Marlen Schäfer

Marlen Schäfer, who is based at the Messer Group headquarters and has responsibility for Marketing Services within the Corporate Communications department, swapped jobs for two months with Anita Kötél, who works in Marketing and Communication at Messer Hungarogáz in Budapest.

What persuaded you to take part in the staff exchange scheme in the first place?
From a career perspective, I was attracted by the idea of working in a Messer company that is more closely linked to the market than we in the holding company can be. I wanted to learn how marketing and communications staff deal effectively with colleagues from sales. Also, I had always wanted to go abroad, but the opportunity never presented itself. I wanted to go after graduating from high school, and then during my university studies, but once I got a job immediately after graduating, the opportunity was gone. In the past, I would probably have gone to America or Asia.

Why then did you choose Hungary as your exchange country?
My colleague from Hungary had vaguely mentioned that she would like to work at headquarters for a time. After this, I thought about whether I would like to go to Hungary. It is a very different country from Germany, even though it is in Europe. It would be interesting to see how people work there, especially those who had experienced the socialist system, before the arrival of the free market economy. And, of course, Budapest is also fascinating as a European metropolis – one of the positive aspects of taking part in a staff exchange at Messer is that most of its bases are located in capital cities. So it didn’t take me long to make up my mind – I wanted to go!

And in the end you were the driving factor?
Exactly! After my colleague Anita Kötél from Messer Hungarogáz came up with the idea, the initiative came from me. It was clear to me that our colleagues in the national subsidiaries knew less about our work than we did about theirs. I therefore wanted her to see the kind of things we produce and achieve in our Corporate Communications department. That the brochures or advertisements that are used in the national subsidiaries are not just thrown together without thought, but are carefully crafted in collaboration with specialists. I really wanted her to see – and then pass on this knowledge – the high level of information sharing that exists, and has to exist, with all the countries, and the wide range of opinions and wishes we often have to accommodate. There should be an appreciation of the fact that corporate communication cannot take every individual wish into account, but rather that communication has to take place within the framework of an overall strategy.

What happened on your fi rst day at work? How did you feel?
I had already had a few days of induction prior to this, so I knew where my offi ce was and where I would be living – everything was prepared. My colleagues even showed me the underground route I had to take. When I arrived for my two-month exchange, I was met at the airport and taken to my flat. On my fi rst day at work, we discussed all the projects that were planned for the next eight weeks and allocated the various responsibilities. We then did a tour of the main departments and I was introduced to my colleagues. Finally, I was invited to join the others for lunch! It was great; I was made to feel very welcome.

Do you feel you are able to work effectively in a country whose language you do not speak?
Yes, because I managed to build up the intranet of Messer Hungarogáz during my time there. At the beginning of my exchange there was no intranet; by the time I left, its design and content had been completed. Since I had more experience of the Group-wide content management system, my colleagues were able to benefi t from this knowledge.

How did you feel when you returned to Germany?
I was looking forward to my work, to seeing my colleagues, and especially to being at home again. I was sad to leave, having formed very close working relationships during these two months. There was a moving farewell party at which presents were exchanged and a few tears were shed. But when you have been away from the office for a couple of months, there is a bit of catching up to do, dealing with things that your exchange partner perhaps did not have the time or experience to deal with. The fi rst couple of weeks after my return were therefore very demanding. Something has also changed in my private life. My daughter has become more independent. I came back with so many impressions, which were ultimately slightly overwhelming for my surroundings. I had to settle back into my old life, become immersed in the daily routine.

How has working together changed as a result of the staff exchange?
We have become more patient with each other. I now know that our Hungarian colleagues have to carry out an awful lot of demanding work at short notice for the Sales department – their  day-to-day business is very timeconsuming. I can understand it when the information I require isn’t always available straight away. The opposite seems to be true as well.

Do you think your exchange can be used as a model?
Yes, I think so. I have written an internal blog about it, and we even covered the staff exchange in our customer magazine. The subject was even discussed at our senior managers’ conference. This has led to several new expressions of interest in the scheme and has highlighted the subject of staff exchanges internally.