Bye or see you?
We as PrintLovers are entering a new era: the current Heidelberg management is taking the company out of the center of the action.
As a result, the ’Heidelberg cosmos’, which had been a determining factor in the success of the print industry for decades, is imploding.
My Open Love Letter to the Heidelberg world created an amazing feedback from experts around the globe. I’ll summarize it to share the current status a.s.a.p.
The new ”Over the Skype“ conversation (dated 22 April 2020) with INKISH.TV’s Morten B. Reitoft adds some more insights, facts and findings. You should read & watch.
The key points:
- It’s becoming more and more clear that we have stepped into a new era where the industry leader Heidelberg gives up his leadership.
- The mantra publicly proclaimed by the CEO Rainer Hundsdörfer, ‘Heidelberg goes digital’ wants to create a new momentum and makes the company, as the lighthouse of the print industry, ’systemically relevant’. — BUT: that is in my opinion completely counter-targeted by the package of measures from March 17, 2020. At least, it creates the danger that the lighthouse will become a dangerous wisp or ghost light for many in the industry.
- The goal of sustainably securing the future and prosperity of print was abandoned. It needs a cultural change that works both internally and externally in order to actually achieve the best for everyone in a customer and market-oriented manner.
At least we identified three crucial areas:
- Thought Leadership, based on empathy, openness in thinking and confident mindset.
- Measures that build trust related all kind of stakeholders
- Deep and advancing understanding of the changes & needs to benefit from the digital age.
What do you think?