Interview: Our new division “Software & Platforms” launched from home

Andreas Schmid, you have now been in this position for over four months. In this interview we would like to discuss your impressions and experiences. But first, we’re interested in how this reorganization came about. What were the motivations for restructuring?

I’ll have to back up a little bit. As part of the major reorganization of CoC Wire Processing into profit centers with a clear market orientation, we also combined software development in order to give greater weight to the software theme. The teams now brought together in my division were previously located in various different departments within the Research & Development division. Coordination across these departmental boundaries and the separation of user interface, machine control and testing led to various frictional losses, made cooperation more difficult and slowed down the development process.

What has changed over time in software development for Komax machines?

The share of software in new developments has generally increased. The requirements for more flexibility and a large variety of configurations are increasingly being solved through software. But, more importantly, our customers are being increasingly challenged by the concepts of the Smart Factory. Komax has already taken this step with its new building, so we know what we’re talking about. The digital factory requires disproportionately more networking and integration with overlaying production systems. In addition, there are new digital services and continuously increasing requirements in terms of quality monitoring and traceability. Networked holistic solutions are the key to our customers’ competitiveness. To this end, we have now pooled our software expertise, are making greater use of synergies and are promoting a common software foundation.

You studied electrical engineering and robotics at ETH Zurich and soon discovered your passion for the development of mechatronic, high-precision, fast systems in interdisciplinary teams. As the head of a software department, you’ve experienced the importance of keeping everyone focused on a common goal in order to successfully develop products and organizations. To achieve this, you rely on the consistent automation and standardization of software development and the application of modern tools, systems and practices. Those were certainly good qualifications for this position. How were you able to familiarize yourself with your new role?

I had agreed with Komax to join the company on September 1, 2020, because before that I wanted to spend two months visiting my brother in Bolivia. Unfortunately, that fell through because of the pandemic. So I was able to use this time to get to know some of my future co-workers and have one-on-one discussions with them. I already knew some of them personally and was therefore able to exchange ideas with them in a relaxed way, because I actually come from the same region. I had a comprehensive introduction program for the first few weeks, and I was able to get to know all the main areas of Komax.

When you started work on September 1, your future employees were scattered throughout the company and were working from home. How did you organize yourself?

In the first few weeks I sought contact with as many people as possible to find out about their needs, wishes and suggestions. We then held workshops to develop the processes for our future collaboration within the division and with the profit centers, which were also building their new setup. We have already held many of these meetings via videoconferencing. I already have experience with this medium though, because at my previous job I worked closely with developers and organizations that were based in many countries. But running workshops online is challenging enough, and even more so when you don’t know each other that well yet.

When did you first get to know your future team as a whole?

That was on October 20 at the first divisional briefing, which of course I didn’t have to hold on-site, but as a videoconference with around 80 people. But that wasn’t an interactive meeting, I was giving an actual monologue, just watching the dozens of little avatars on my screen. I couldn’t see any reactions, no feedback, zero, nada. This was a remarkable new experience for me, almost surreal, and I didn't know whether the things I was saying were really coming across.

By now, everyone had seen you on screen before, which was certainly helpful going forward. This enabled you to take further measures to get everything ready for the launch on January 1.

The first thing was to pin down the details of the internal organization and how our teams would cooperate with the profit centers. But we also had to reach a consensus on what we could go on to implement in the first quarter and what the priorities were. To do this, we scheduled a large planning meeting, again as a videoconference, with over 100 participants in some cases, along with various parallel break-out sessions and information sessions. The aim was to inform and negotiate, partly in plenary sessions, and then come back into working groups to work out more detailed plans. In preparation, we held various training courses and workshops to prepare the involved people. It was worth it, because we accomplished a lot in a day and a half and were then well prepared for the launch.

How did the management support you during this preparatory phase?

The conditions for that were ideal. My “Götti” (Swiss German for godfather) was Franco Viggiano, then Vice President Research & Development – so, from the division where the teams had been located until then. Of course, he was very familiar with the history, the new requirements and all my stakeholders and contacts and was therefore able to help me again and again and bounce back my ideas.

So by the beginning of the year, you were ready to have the new division essentially up and running. What happened next?

With the new building, all 65 people could have started working together on one floor – ideal conditions for teamwork. But the working from home rule had come in, and we had to make other arrangements. All of our meetings took place via video. This was a huge challenge, as some of the teams had been newly formed and the process flows were new to a lot of people. Our agile development process is based on daily team discussions, aligning our next milestones on a bi-weekly basis, and regular retrospective reviews so that we can meet the quarterly target agreed with Product Management. Doing all of this virtually was quite a big change but the teams were brilliant, overcoming the challenges with great drive and proactive commitment. We also had to address strategic issues. How can we improve the culture? Which processes can be increasingly automated? How can we develop our organization? How do we bring more visibility to our results? What skills do we need to develop? In short: How can we further improve the quality of our work?

What has been your experience with remote collaboration to date?

There are actually quite a few positive aspects. Meetings start very punctually because participants no longer have to change rooms. They are more focused on the issues and write their own minutes right away in real time. This eliminates many unnecessary discussions afterward. But then there are disadvantages, too. When working on the virtual whiteboard, lags can lead to confusion. In discussions, several people often talk at the same time. It is true that you can raise a virtual hand on the screen when you want to speak. But often the moderator doesn’t really know in which order to let their participants take their turn. So there are clear advantages to meetings in real life. In person, you can recognize many reactions by people’s body language and can react accordingly. Plus, constantly staring at the screen makes you tired, and you need to schedule enough breaks. But I have the advantage that my team come from the software sector and so the inhibition threshold for virtual meetings is low. If technical problems arise, they can usually be solved right away – we are the experts, after all :-).

How can you keep morale up while working from home?

It's a very difficult thing to do, and I don’t have a magic formula for it. We miss the shared coffee breaks and corridor conversations, not just in terms of business but on a personal level. We can take this into account in virtual meetings by allowing small talk and by telling each other some personal things. I encourage my team leaders to seek out these informal exchanges and to identify any problems and find solutions during team meetings and one-on-one discussions with their employees. Recently, our Human Resources department had a great idea to offer an online escape game, which gave us an active opportunity to get together outside of work. That kind of thing creates bonds.

How do you personally experience working from home?

I appreciate having a family at home. On the one hand, this provides stability and structure, and I now see my children at lunchtime rather than just in the evening after work. I make sure to take a lunch break, and I think it’s great that I’m not wasting time commuting to work. On the other hand, I miss the exercise; I'm not walking around the building to meet colleagues. So I had to get into the habit of going out every evening for a jog or a bike ride, or even just for a walk around the neighborhood, not because I love doing it, but out of pure common sense.

Are you looking forward to the time after the pandemic?

Yes, hugely, I’m especially looking forward to being able to work with my teams face to face. I’m sure it’ll be quick and easy for us to get back from the virtual world to the real one. On the other hand, I have now discovered the convenience of working from home. I could imagine continuing with it one day a week. That seems doable, both for me and for my employees.

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