Creating an Agile Organization
As Group CEO of UNIQA Insurance Group, Andreas Brandstetter oversees one of the leading insurance organizations in Central and Eastern Europe. In an effort to improve his organization's ability to adapt to change, he enrolled five members of his senior leadership team in the Leading Change and Organizational Renewal program at Harvard Business School (HBS) Executive Education. In this interview, he describes how the program benefited him and his team.
Why did you decide to bring a team to Leading Change and Organizational Renewal?
It's absolutely crucial to expand the number of people in your company who speak the same language. You need to learn, in a common way, the principles, methods, and theories that are relevant to your business. The more people in your company who understand or speak the same language, the more people who will align on performance steps and opportunity gaps—and the more successful everyone will be. For example, before we gained this common language, it was more difficult to get everyone to agree on our company's mission and joint strategy.
Did participating in this program change how you approach key challenges at your company?
Absolutely! In Europe, the financial industry is stuck, more or less, in traditional models and outdated methods. However, the world around us is dramatically changing. Customer expectations are changing. Disruptors are breaking into our industry. Industry borders are breaking down. Different cultures, different ways of thinking, and different mindsets are emerging. This means that we have to both maintain our existing role and adapt to the needs of a new world. It's a major challenge to balance performance gaps with opportunity gaps, but this program helped us identify ways to do just that.
How did you benefit from the case study method?
Since I attended the program with five people from my company, we were able to sit together and talk about how the cases connected to our current challenges at work. This added a great deal of value. It gave us a chance to apply the methods that we learned as well as reflect on the input of a diverse group of participants from around the world.
How did the on-campus experience maximize your learning?
Everything on campus is organized in a very professional way—from how the application process works to how case materials are provided to how logistical information is shared. The food and accommodations were excellent, as were the sport facilities. Being on campus also made it easy to get breakfast or lunch with other people from the program and enjoy the diversity of the classroom.
What advice do you have for someone coming to the program?
It's an academic challenge, so you should come prepared. Read the cases and work through all of the materials in advance, because as soon as you're at HBS, you will be busy. Expect to be challenged, but in a good way.