Porsche 2015 Annual Report Download - page 34

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Annual Report — Porsche AG — 2015
Success Factor: Human Capital
Trust
Every Single
Person Counts
Generally the role of the “innovator” is left up to the R&D
department in industrial companies. But Blume takes
asomewhat different approach: Production – like every
other department – becomes an idea factory in order
toexploit the full potential for the best products on the
market. At Porsche this vision is reality, because the
employees possess certain skills. People like Christian
Pfänder, for example. A man who goes through life
upright and with a clear view of the problems ahead and
their solutions. At the Pilot Centre in Zuffenhausen,
Pfänder is responsible for turning prototypes into pro-
duction vehicles. To achieve this, he must (in his own
words) be a “mediator, communicator and fire-fighter.”
His colleagues from Vehicle Development and Production
each see the world through “their own spectacles,”
Pfänder says. It is vital that these different ways of look-
ing at things and interests be bundled together. Working
hand in hand means bringing the new vehicle to its
goal: series maturity. And this must happen as fast as
possible and in perfect quality. A job that demands
ofhim a great deal of skill and technical know-how every
single day. “That often means making compromises –
but always for the good of the cause,” says the industrial
engineer.
His winning nature and ten intense years as an amateur
footballer have taught Pfänder to always strike the right
chord. “This is not the place for a lone wolf.” The job
ismostly stressful (“It feels like I am juggling with snow-
balls while they melt in my hands”), but it is never boring.
He runs meetings in the Pilot Centre in Zuffenhausen and
later on at the production lines in the individual plants
with a great understanding of his metier and a talent for
mediation, and he manages to walk the tightrope
between the colleagues from Development and those
from Production. And all that matters here is the
strength of the arguments, because Pfänder does not
have the authority to give orders. “That wouldn’t work
in the long term anyway,” he says.
And yet, it did not necessarily look as if the 31-year-old
would have such a meteoric rise in his career. After leav-
ing middle school, then high school and vocational col-
lege, Pfänder trained as an industrial clerk at a medi-
um-sized company and, at the beginning of his twenties,
realised that this did not have to be the end of his career
path. He started studying Industrial Engineering and
landed an internship at Porsche. His degree thesis on
“Implementing a quality method in prototype construc-
tion” catapulted him into manufacturing the 918 Spyder.
An outstanding vehicle in many respects. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Foresight
Inspiration
Motivation
Dynamics
Freedom
Transparency
With great technical understanding
and a talent for mediation:
Christian Pfänder turns prototypes
into production vehicles.