Podcast “Alles neu...? Aus dem Maschinenraum“
Episode #11: Cornelia & Philipp Horsch
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PODCAST EPISODE 11
"Together, we err ahead – that is our management premise"
Cornelia & Philipp Horsch, CEOs at Horsch
Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.
Episode Notes
The agricultural machinery manufacturer Horsch is basically the family business par excellence: Both the brothers Philipp and Michael Horsch and the latter's wife, Cornelia Horsch, sit on the management board of the more than 50-year-old company. A total of 13 children of the current management generation could also – depending on their will and ability – enter the business one day. To take this close family situation into account, Horsch has adopted an ironclad principle: “We have been making all important decisions by consensus for 40 years,“ says Philipp Horsch, who together with Cornelia is a guest on the podcast “Alles neu...? Aus dem Maschinenraum"“ With regard to the error culture in the company, the following applies: “Together, we err forward – that is our leadership premise.“ At Horsch, it is also about reducing hierarchies as much as possible and working according to the principle of network organisation. This approach should help to continue a success story: The Schwandorf-based company is regarded as the tinkerer among agricultural machinery manufacturers. New equipment is being developed, autonomous driving is being tried out, and a lot of new things are being tested. “There is hostility to technology in society, especially in food. That certainly doesn't get us anywhere,“ says Philipp Horsch. “We rather need acceleration there.“ Last year, the company generated a 40 percent increase in turnover with this openness, and hundreds of new employees were hired. Cornelia and Philipp Horsch talk about why they see themselves more as a health company and about the question of why self-driving cars work better in agriculture than in the big city – in the podcast with Tobias Rappers, Managing Director of Maschinenraum and Capital editor Nils Kreimeier.
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Cornelia Horsch
The graduate economist started her career in 1988 in the internal sales department, later she became sales and customer service manager and "on the side" marketing. Today, she is Managing Director of HORSCH Maschinen GmbH and on the Board of Directors of HORSCH Holding SE as well as Managing Director of the French subsidiary Horsch France SARL. One of the goals of her work is further networking and strengthening through intensive communication of the areas of service, sales and marketing in order to expand existing markets and open up new markets.
In an honorary capacity, Cornelia Horsch is involved in the board of the LCC International University in Klaipeda, Lithuania. As Chair of the Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University Council, she brings current issues and relevant developments to the forefront of university education. Cornelia Horsch is also heavily involved in promoting local art and culture at the company's Schwandorf location.
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Philipp Horsch
Growing up on a farm as the fifth of six children, Philipp discovered his passion for agriculture and technology very early. After school, he initially trained as a farmer, followed by a period of civilian service in the US and studies in industrial engineering, specialising in mechanical engineering. Philipp has been involved in the joint company since 1990, from the beginning with a focus on the technical areas of development and supply chain (procurement and production), and today also in other corporate units. Customer proximity is a matter close to his heart, and so direct contact with farmers worldwide is a focal point of his activities. This not only generates impulses for new products and business models, but also many enriching relationships and networks worldwide.
In addition to business and family, voluntary work in various areas in the ecclesiastical as well as charitable environment, including in connection with the charitable Horsch Foundation, is important to him. Together with Michael and Cornelia Horsch as well as Theodor Leeb, Philipp leads the HORSCH group of companies in the first generation.
About the Podcast
How can the origin and future of Mittelstand companies be courageously united? What are the challenges facing family businesses and what experiences do they gather in digital transformation? These questions are answered by “Alles neu...? Aus dem Maschinenraum“, the interview podcast for German Mittelstand*. Once a month,
Tobias Rappers, Managing Director of Maschinenraum, and Nils Kreimeier, Senior Editor of the business magazine Capital, talk to thought leaders and makers from the heart of the German economy and focus on the personalities and their motivation.
*The podcast is in German.
For more episodes of "Alles neu...? Aus dem Maschinenraum" please click here!
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