Handelsblatt – Michael Ensser: “Leadership is a major strategic topic.”

Digitalization, automation, robotization, artificial intelligence – our society is in the midst of a fundamental transformation. It impacts on companies and of course on executive search firms as well, says Michael Ensser, Managing Partner of Egon Zehnder Germany, in an interview with German business daily Handelsblatt. According to Ensser, squaring up to this challenge has long since gone way beyond looking for the perfect Chief Digital Officer. Digitalization “demands that we – and with us our clients – adopt a whole new perspective.”

The challenges posed by digitalization cannot be mastered by technical means alone but call in particular for good leadership as well. This, Ensser says, is one reason why Egon Zehnder is in the process of becoming a leadership advisor. “We no longer simply search for and find new people for our clients but also accompany the new hires and their existing colleagues as they face up to their leadership challenges.“ Zehnder shapes the process of change in the best interests of both parties, he says, in line with the motto “attack is the best form of defense.”

Tanja Kewes: “Attack is the best form of defense”. An interview (in German) with Michael Ensser in Handelsblatt (€) November 9, 2017, pp. 14-15.