Having got to know from the IHK economic edition in January 2019 on who Ralf Schmitt actually is, we now deal with the topic „What does Ralf Schmitt actually do?”
In order to be able to answer this question in detail, it is important to briefly deal with the general question „What does a CEO actually do?” Because Ralf Schmitt is the chairman of the eves_ Group.
As the CEO you are primarily responsible for monitoring the development of a company and successfully positioning it on the market. In addition, a CEO should ideally also be the contact person for all employees.
But what exactly does the work of Ralf Schmitt look like? What topics does he deal with, what happens in his office and what’s behind the what’s-up time?
When asked, normally when does Ralf Schmitt get up in the morning, he answers: „Between 05:15 and 05:45 a.m.“. When his alarm clock rings in the morning, the rest of his patchwork family is still sleeping. The time in the morning is the most relaxing for him. He uses this time to enjoy a cup of coffee in peace and take his dog Shadow for a walk.
After the morning walk he devotes himself to his e-mails and works through some topics at home in one go. Thrice a week he drops his stepchildren at school before going to the office. In addition, it is important for him to be there for his employees and to take time for them. But how do you reconcile all this?
„It’s all a question of organization,“ says Ralf. „For this I have introduced a so-called What’s Up Time. During this time, everyone can come to me and deliver their worries and needs to me. We then look for solutions together. These can also be personal problems. I want to be perceived not only as a boss, but also as a friend. That’s the most special thing about our eves_ family. We help each other. Open communication is the key to a successful company“.
At the moment, one of his most time-consuming tasks is more a continual one, involving a lot of work: the expansion of the eves_ Group. He is currently developing a concept meticulously and with great effort for the establishment of nearshoring and the strengthening and expansion of offshoring in Trivandrum. A further major goal this year is the integration of Röhrich and Partner after the takeover on 01.01.2019. For Ralf Schmitt, it is important that all the employees of Röhrich and Partner feel as a part of the eves_ family.
Of course, managing the eves_ Group is not his only task. As a person who feels more like a Braunschweig native, he is not only involved in sports sponsorships but also in the IT development in Braunschweig/Wolfsburg region. He is a founding member and chairman of the board of the i3systems Fördergemeinschaft e.V. This association currently consists of 20 medium-sized IT companies. He is also a member of the supervisory board of Öffentlichen Facility Management GmbH.
Having all these tasks, a real “end of the workday” feeling is less noticeable in him. Of course he is familiar with the term, but he defines it differently for himself. „Of course, as a boss you’re never really in the end-of-the-workday frame of mind after work. It’s important to me that I don’t dump my work problems on my family. When I really want to clear my head off, I sit down on my motorcycle and take a little tour,“ says the passionate motorcyclist, pointing to the big screen in his office.
Also jogging and of course the time with his family and Shadow gives him the opportunity to take a little mental break.
For the last of my questions, on whether he himself has also had moments when he would wish to rather have a year off, Ralf answers self-confidently: „Of course sometimes everything is too much for me and then I wish to have a break. But having a whole year off is unrealistic in my job. Every day so much happens in our surroundings that you have to be able to react quickly. Proactively acting would be even better – and that’s what I’m working on.“
In conclusion, only one thing can be said: The job of a CEO involves foresighted work, a lot of consideration, a lot of power and a feeling for his fellow human beings. Ralf Schmitt possesses all these qualities and will surprise us more in the future, especially when it comes to the New Work Generation.
