The all-rounder

Welcome to KAMAX, Ms. Schlick. Could you please tell us a bit about your career to date?

I originally studied business administration with a specialization in innovation and technology management. After completing my studies and receiving my degree (Diplom-Kauffrau), I began my career as a trainee at what is now Continental. I followed this up with a few years at TE Connectivity before moving on to Linde, where I started off in plant engineering and ended up in industrial gases. I’ve been able to cover quite a wide range of areas over the course of my career, from controlling all the way to strategic market development. I spent a year in Singapore and was in England before that, and I oversaw many different projects for the Executive Board and senior management.
Having spent many years on the strategy side, when I returned from Singapore, I set myself the goal of moving to operations. I began in operational project management and followed this up by spending the past two and a half years in the production of industrial gases. I particularly enjoyed working in production, and I really had a great team – that’s why I want to jump right in to the smells and sounds here in Homberg.

Why did you decide to come here?

Personal reasons brought me to the Homberg region. I took a look at various companies, and KAMAX was the one that made the best impression on me. The atmosphere in the interviews and on-site was simply amazing. Things are very open and friendly here, and I also like the support I have been given by colleagues. All of this has made a very positive impression on me. Not to mention the fact that the company is in a very good position. I decided that this was an excellent opportunity to work my way in here and accomplish something. And now I’m here!

You spent the past few years getting to know all parts of a company, from major decisions throughout the supply chain, to the challenges that one encounters in day-to-day production operations. What things have you learned in your former positions that you are bringing with you to KAMAX?

The combination of strategic work and actual implementation in production. Experience in the field of production is unbelievably valuable. For one thing, that it is important on the operational side to never lose sight of the goal of long-term success, and to act accordingly, but also vice versa. Another is that when creating and implementing a strategy, it is essential to understand how a company approaches challenges at an operational level, and how it deals with these. It is an area in which large corporations like Linde and KAMAX have a lot of similarities. With some challenges, it really does not matter how big or small a company is. One need look no further than the overall economic situation, and the extreme fluctuations that we have been experiencing ever since entering the post-pandemic era. A related factor is the challenge faced by large and small companies alike – creating an ability to react ever more quickly.

In your opinion, what things are part of a good corporate strategy?

Naturally I believe that a good strategy must rest on a sound technical basis. We must ask ourselves the essential questions: How do we see ourselves? What is our strategic vision? What does KAMAX stand for? Today, and in the future? Where are our strengths and weaknesses? What does our competitive environment look like? Where are markets headed? How can we generate lasting benefits for our customers?
The more complex the environment, and the more volatile the conditions, the more important it is that we have a good strategy. Yet it is also clear that it is no longer sufficient to simply review the strategy on an annual basis and make minor modifications. A good corporate strategy has to allow a company to react faster and more flexibly to changes.
Yet even the best corporate strategy offers no guarantee of success. As with any plan, it is not until it has been implemented in actual practice that one can see if it will be successful. The factors that are decisive here are very different ones: Were the necessary conditions established in a timely fashion? Are employees familiar with the strategy and able to effectively orient their actions accordingly? Does our company culture promote acceptance of the strategy?
That is why I believe that one of the most important factors in ensuring a strategy’s success is integrating individual departments into the process early on, during the strategy development phase, rather than waiting until implementation.

How are you starting your journey with us?

I am someone who first observes and listens. In other words, as I start out here I want to get to know a lot of my colleagues, establish relationships, and gain an understanding of how things work here. At the same time, I will naturally be looking to see the assumptions on which the strategy to date was based, and what has changed since the strategy was defined. We need to see where we are today. What external and internal factors have changed that we must now account for? Where are the markets taking us? What can we do to maintain and further expand our competitiveness? What USPs do we need to offer if we wish to be successful over the long term?

With all of these things to consider, how do you manage to switch off at the end of the day?