Leadership and the Return of Social Market Economy! Prof. Dr. Jörg Rocholl, President ESMT Berlin

Professor Dr. Jörg Rocholl, President of the ESMT in Berlin joins
Sebastian Morgner. The seventeenth episode of the Podcast
concerns with the impact of Covid-19 on the academic world and
its possible implications for the future of the European Union
and the leadership within. 


After a quick introduction, the conversation starts by addressing
the difficulties, schools and universities were faced with during
these last few months. In this context, Prof. Dr. Rocholl
elaborates on how his institution managed to allow for the
continuation of its classes and events, as well as its
difficulties to overcome in the beginning of the lockdown. When
beingasked if this experience would call for any changes in the
curriculum, he strongly agrees and states that from now on it
should be a common practice to critically think about unlikely
events and how they might affect business as usual. This could
allow for better and faster reaction in the future. Thereafter,
the discussion turns towards leadership. Prof. Dr. Rocholl claims
that in times of crisis, communication is more important than
ever. He states that a leader’s ability to convey a feeling of
shared perception while at the same time remaining in a position
of making crucial decisions, is one of the most important
management qualities  today.
With regards to the overarching situation the virus and the
consequent lockdown had on the European economy, Prof. Dr.
Rocholl argues that contrary to many Chinese and American
companies, most local industries have not yet been able to
benefit from the current disruption. He believes that the reason
for this is the lack of big corporate entities and the resulting
reliance on heavily externalised supply chains. In times of
crisis when companies prefer to act in self-interest, this leads
to longer lead-times and potentially to the collapse of the
subsequent value chain. Therefore, he argues for a “European
Marshall Plan” that on one hand allows existing businesses to
overcome the current economic shock and on the other hand works
as an engine for future prosperity by founding promising local
start-ups in order to prevent foreign corporate takeovers.
At last addressing the issue of sustainability Prof. Dr. Rocholl
is convinced that the global perspective is more important than
ever. With our current problems not only affecting specific
countries but relevant to the entire world, taking united steps
for the better must be at the centre of collective action. Since
he believes the private sector to play a crucial part in this, he
advocates for allocating resources to improve the current system
rather than create a new one.