DLD Conference

1% done - Angela Zäh on Hacker Culture at Facebook

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:04:12 +0200

Facebook’s hacker culture is what has helped to company grow and reinvent itself through unexpected solutions over and over again. There is no guarantee that this will still be the right recipe for success in the future, but for now it works…

What do you do when you are faced by a problem that calls for an unconventional solution? You hack it!

Hacker culture is a phenomenon that has helped open doors for many start-ups and their employees, but nowhere has the approach had greater impact than Facebook.

“Hacker culture is about finding solutions that are new, with low cost and innovative,” says Angelas Zäh, International Growth Manager at Facebook. She has come to offer a public lecture on hacker culture to a number of students and other listeners, most of whom are hackers themselves.

Her lecture at the second DLDL Open Campus begins after a brief introduction by partners from CDTM and IBC, and a couple of welcoming words from Hubert Burda Digital’s own Chief Scientist, Jean-Paul Schmetz.

Zäh takes the audience on a virtual trip around Facebook headquarters, showing off a handful of motivational posters that embody the company culture.

“What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” says one. “Done is better than perfect” says another.

“Hacker culture is a lifestyle, it can be applied to things outside code,” Zäh says as she describes how employees “hacked” their office space to gain more space. At Facebook, these things are normal, she says.

Hackathons - all-night sessions of hacking, coding and project building at the company offices - have paved the way for unforeseen innovations. Like the “Translate post” function, which came almost by coincidence from the hands of intern during a hackathon.

The audience tunes in with questions about Facebook’s role in a mediatized world, its ambitions and outlook for the future. Zäh answers by showing a number of big yellow poster, saying “This journey is 1% finished!”

A participant wants to know whether this attitude will still be there in 20 years, as the company grows. “Will hacker culture still be relevant? Or will you be 99% finished then?”

Zäh smiles and shrugs as she gives her answer.

“We’ll see.”

The Power of Women

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 21:01:00 +0200

Only a few days after a woman has been brutally executed in Afghanistan for alleged adultery the last panel at DLDwomen conference addresses issues like gender equality, power and the role of women in the 21^st century.

Today’s women are enjoying rights that only a couple of generations ago were unthinkable. However, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Paley Centre for Media, Pat Mitchell, claims: “the world is changing, but there are still many places where being a woman is dangerous. When I was born women’s life aspiration in the US was to marry a man and have 2’5 children. Actually I didn’t care, I had my dreams and I knew I was meant to do something else”

Mitchell made a really touching introduction to Catalina Escobar, founder of Juan Felipe Gómez Escobar Foundation (Cartagena, Colombia). “Catalina is one of a kind, a woman who turned the tragedy of loosing a son into the strongest working passion”.

When her son Juanfe (Juan Felipe) passed away, Catalina realized that children’s mortality was way to high in Colombia. From that moment on her goal in life became to save as many Colombian children as possible from an early death. “Juanfe’s death is the saddest story of my live, but this is also a love story. Now I have many sons. All those under the protection of Juan Felipe Gómez Escobar Foundation are my Juanfes”, confesses Catalina Escobar with glassy eyes.

Catalina’s commitment with children has become an obsession, “when you work in this field, every single night, before going to sleep, you think: you better come up with something else because these children deserve better”.

Women are extremely involved in humanitarian work today. Catalina is not the only example of a woman whose main target in life is to help others. Edit Schlaffer, founder of Women without Borders, explains how the organisation tries to help women in troubled areas of the word.

“There are no women in top security-political positions, but I can tell you that women have a special skill when it comes to conflict solving. Unlike what we see on the Western press, most Afghan mothers are horrified with the idea of her sons joining terrorist cells, they just need support so they can put an end to this violent situation.

Women without Borders operates in nine countries where they explore the potential of women to reduce violence. “We actually believe that women are security experts”, adds Schlaffer.

Mitchell, who is moderating the panel, cannot avoid but to intervene and remind the audience that power is still a male concept. “Women stay away from power because it is a male invention. We, women, should change the concept of power; we think that power is ‘a bad-guys-business’, but the reality is that power allows change.

Cairo-based political strategist and CEO of Karama, Hibaaq Oman, stresses that, as far the Arab Spring is concerned, there’s still a lot of hard work to do: “if a government leaves women behind they are not respecting one of the key pillars of the democratic Arab movements”.

But women are not just misrepresented in the Arab world, sexism is very much alive, specially on TV and advertising. Filmmaker, actress, and advocate for women Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who joins the talk via Skype from California, talks about the misrepresentation of females on TV.

“We have an enormous power as media consumers, however we are still often portrayed as objects. My job is to remind everyone our role as citizens and consumers. Bear in mind that, despite accounting for 51% of the US population, only 17% of the Congress are women”.

Newsom’s inspiring movie “MissRepresentation” is already out, you can check out the trailer here.

Reaping The Benefits Of Diversity In The Workplace

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 19:04:06 +0200

Isabelle Kürschner from Catalyst, a diversity strategist nonprofit organization, says “Don’t fix the women, fix the workplace.” It’s past time you try and train and prepare women better, you now need to change the whole working environment. What’s in it for the companies is clear. “Of course, we want to be nice and fair but diversity and inclusion bring performance to the company” says Jean-Michel Monnot working for Diversity & Inclusion at Sodexo, a company which employs 380,000 persons in 80 countries,. The company actually made diversity 1 of the 5 pillars of the company.

It’s in the interest of the companies, really. For Frech, careers are now wave-shaped, not linear. It would be stupid to lose people of the way along the way”, for instance at time of pregnancies. There’s a true need for flexibility. Later, she underlined how hy ignoring diversity, a company will put itself behind the competition because they access a larger talent pool.

Like any investment, before reaping the benefit of diversity, companies have to mobilize resources first. Monnot explained how training is crucial in the process, “we are all build with stereotypes, we have to be aware of them to change the approach.” Adidas’ Diana Frech concurred: “we have 60 nationalities working for Adidas just in Germany, 50/50 male-female and a gender pay gap of 3%” she said, before nuancing “we still need to work on our own unconscious behaviors, resistances, personal patterns and inclusion problems.” Isabell Welpe of Technische Universität München then piled on with her academic background, adding “unconscious assumptions are the greatest barriers.”

How to shake the bad habits off then? The scholar explained that “to change behaviors, you don’t need not to change women, you need to change the companies at the cultural and organisational level”. She then urged the audience to focus the training on the executive level since the message has to come from the top management, down. Of course, challenges may occur. For internationalized companies, both the environment and the local executives matter explained Monnot, who warn also against making assumptions based on the country the company is located.

He also find that non-compulsory measures amounted to very little. “If you don’t make quotas; or call them whatever you like, target, objectives,” he asserted,”nothing will change. But you need before to educate.” In the end, Monnot said, “we have to find and work with similarities and differences, and celebrate the differences.” It worked particularly well for Sodexo judging by the impressive list of diversity-related awards they received. It will hopefully inspire others.

Drivers of Prevention: The Female Touch

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 18:55:50 +0200

Prevention: incredibly important yet far less in a spotlight when compared to development of a medicine. That is probably why women dominate it. This is a unanimous view of the participants of the panel that focuses on cancer prevention.

It is not about big money. It is not about fame. It is simply about playing defence and not a glorified offense, says Brigitte Mohn, board member of the Bertelsmann Foundation, adding that the strive for a ‘silver bullet’ - a strive for a cure - gets most of the attention. However, things are slowly improving, Carolyn Aldige, President of Prevent Cancer Foundation, argues. Still, there is a long way to go.

Yet, there are more and more examples of success, such as the tobacco legislation that for instance bans smoking in public places. Tobacco lobbyists were pressing hard against it. “They even launched a personal attack against me and tried to discredit me. But they failed,” recalls Martina Poetschke-Langer of the German Cancer Research.

Other panelists tell a story of neglect. “I was never attacked. But they did not join me,” says Aldige adding that instead of cheering for prevention majority kept looking for a medicine. “You need to advertise the right data at the right time. You need to present these data to the press. It is effective, when you do it right,” offers recipe for success Poetschke-Langer.

At the same time, it is important to fight prejudices. “When we set up our foundation, stroke was considered an old people’s disease,” remembers Mohn adding that such a notion is simply wrong. Stroke can hit a young person, a mother-to-be, it can hit just about anybody and spreading the word thus can make a huge difference. As Poetschke-Langer sees it, this task is – and is going to be – largely up to women. “Prevention relies on communication and women are better in communicating than men,” she explains.

It only follows that women need to be proactive on the personal level as well. Men often refuse to get checked, says Christa Maar, a Founder of Felix Burda Stiftung, adding that it requires women to change the men’s minds – or to act on their behalf.

“We need to make appointment for the men. We are the gatekeepers after all,” agrees Aldige suggesting that sometimes it is simply about dragging ones partner to the doctor. Other time, it is all about getting the word out. For instance, lung cancer is the most preventable of all the types of cancer. Stop smoking and the chance of getting sick decreases significantly, explains Poetschke-Langer.

To get the message of the power of prevention out, women need to be heard, all the participants of the panel agree. In a male-dominated environment, that often requires to turn into an alpha dog. “I am an alpha dog,” admits Cornelia Ulrich, Director of NCT Heidelberg, adding that she has to be an alpha dog. Otherwise, her department would not get any funding. It is simple like that.

“We don’ t want to take over the world,” says Ulrich. We just want to do our jobs. “We want it to be normal that there are women in leading positions,” she adds.

Do Good with Social Entrepreneurship

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 18:11:32 +0200

Social entrepreneurship has the potential to improve our world and accelerate opportunities for women - this is the mantra promoted by the Womanity Foundation and its Changemakers project.

Womanity, represented by Antonella Vischer, works to empower women and girls around the world though further their contribution in economic, political, communities. The organization focuses on projects in Brazil, Palestine and India for the moment, but ambitions are high and expansions just around the corner.

Social entrepreneurship is a commercial business, a private initiative, Antonella clarifies. It has to be sustainable, viable and sometimes even attractive to investors to be really successful.

Through Changemakers, Womanity has encouraged women and girls to reach out to their dreams while doing the common good in the process. The organization goes way beyond concerns about funding and instead provides contact with professionals, consultants, networks, other social entrepreneurs.

The return is growth, empowerment and added social value to the communities of their collaborators.

Social retailer Asta in Brazil is one such project. The start-up was founded by young Rio de Janeiro native Alice Freitas, who joins the conversation via Skype.

She is a firm believer that the model can succeed. Under her helm, Asta has experienced a growth of more than 300% since its start in 2008. Freites started out with 5 salesladies of crafts and goods. Now she has more than 800.

And there is potential for others too, both directly and indirectly.

“Studies show in data that social entrepreneurs do make an impact,” Vischer says.

This can happen for instance through pushing policy change, promoting awareness and pushing the common perceptions of gender boundaries.

In terms of cold cash, “there is a very interesting opportunity in the relationship between businesses and social businesses,” she insists.

But investment is not necessarily for those who only look for profit. Supporters of social entrepreneurship can build strong brands, and expect a social return on investment.

It’s a journey towards the greater good, with a myriad of opportunities for partners and actors in all corners of the industry.

Above, from left to right: Barbara Sarx-Lohse (Flexperten),...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 18:07:05 +0200

Above, from left to right: Barbara Sarx-Lohse (Flexperten), Greta Kreuzer (cosinuss° GmbH), Helen Cao (OneNumber), Andrea Wittek (BoxCryptor) and Catharina van Delden (innosabi GmbH).

The mentees of the ‘Hypovereinsbank Mentoring for women start-up entrepreneurs program’ took the stage in front of their mentors (including co-founder and Director of the DLD Conference Stephanie Czerny) to talk about their project. They range from healthcare technology, phone service to encryption software and job search platform.

The program paired the young women for 6 months with female mentors from the HVB Women’s Council as well as from start-up experts so they could share their knowledge, experience, networks and tips.

Putting Web, Social & Mobile To Good Use In News

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 17:32:00 +0200

DLD has an habit to go beyond the buzzwords, to explore the real-world truth behind the concepts. So naturally, when a star-studded panel (Katharina Borchert of Spiegel Online, Donata Hopfen of BILD digital and Svetlana Mironyuk of RIA Novosti) discussed what’s new in news, honest answers are expected, as well as hints of an healthy competition among panelists.

First item on the menu: online media. It is really a different job to publish news online than on print? For Borchert, at the Spiegel Online, “the scope of what we cover online is broader, but we are very much hard-news driven”, similarly to the coverage of the weekly magazine. Their work benefits from the format, too: “linking to things on the web, including blogs, can be considered original sources.”

Hopfen told the audience that Bild online works with more short stories, and is primarily picture-driven. Both composition of the webpage and exclusivity of content are crucial for them and their 30 million Unique Visitors a month (vs 11 million for the Spiegel Online). As a (state-owned) russian news agency, it was easier for Ria Novosti to adapt to the Web and its audience than a print publication, explained Mironyuk.

What about mobile technology and women, the moderator, Hubert Burda Media’s very own Jean-Paul Schmetz asked. Mironyuk said that in Russia, women don’t consume news in the office, they listen to the radio or use mobile devices. Bild’s usage peaks for mobile connections are at 7am and 11pm, when one wakes up or goes to bed, explained Hopfen, before adding “It means we have to work 24/7.” Borchert said that, so far, the Spiegel mobile users were either very much sport-driven or looking for a quick update on a breaking news.

Last but not least, the role of social media. Is it truly a game changer? For the CEO of SPIEGEL Online, the ambivalence of putting your content out and having other sources of traffic is big. For instance, the question of the Facebook reader remains. Hopfen was more skeptical: “we have Facebook channels, it works well, but it’s not like Bild drive more than 1% of our traffic from Facebook”.

For Spiegel Online, “Facebook drives 3% of our traffic to the site. But it’s not about figures, it’s to stay relevant and reach the young audience” complemented Borchert. Bringing an exterior perspective, Mironyuk concluded with a twist: “in social media in Russia, users feel less control from the State. So they express their feelings. As a result, social media are seen as new media and news websites are seen as old, mainstream.”

As the new generation gets its news almost exclusively from social media, news websites seems to be facing an new competitor, formerly thought to be an ally.

Respect to Gabi Zedlmayer’s decade of impact on HP, her...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 17:06:00 +0200

Respect to Gabi Zedlmayer’s decade of impact on HP, her environment and technological innovation. She has been rewarded the DLDwomen Impact Award 2012. Thank you, Gabi for your support and great social work!

iLIve2Lead girls at DLDwomenWhat are the core qualities of...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 16:37:00 +0200

Julia Beliak & Ellie Bode

Roseval Concepcion & Zhanara Asizova

Chiara Palieri & Ines Le Bihan

Lynn Ripal & Agita Pasaribu

Hadeer Adel & Yashasvini Rajeswar

Maria Khalaf

iLIve2Lead girls at DLDwomen

What are the core qualities of leadership? For the girls of the non-profit organization of iLIve2Lead it’s all about (D)reaming big, being (A)authentic, showing (R)resilience and being (E)mpathetic - in one word DARE.

In an interactive workshop, the girls show why they can be considered the pipeline for the next generation of global women leaders. Bright young women between the age of 15 and 22, each share their individual story on how they want to have an impact on their home countries.

Having the digitally driven revolution in Egypt in mind, many of us don’t know about the sacrifices these women had to make in order to change their political situation. Hadeer Adel of Egypt shows a video dedicated to these women, strong and inspiring figures - “I’m a girl, I’m a human being, I’m free.”

“It can be very hard to be ‘a Hadeer’ in Egypt alone - she needs someone to support her!” says iLive2Lead president and founder Laura Bode. Exactly this is what the girls need, support and a network. DLDwomen is already supporting them by bringing them here and introducing them to inspiring female leaders, says Yashasvini Rajeswar of India.

But what else can we all do? How can we establish ‘New Rules, New Values’ in leadership?

Tonight, Julia Beliak, Coralie Malissard and Yashasvini Rajeswar will discuss with Siemens CEO Peter Löscher, Steffi Czerny and Maria Furtwängler-Burda. They will demonstrate how to rock the roles of gender and leadership, live on stage. They’ll ask for instance about the skills needed to lead on a regular day-to-day basis, especially when a smooth organizational restructuring is the goal. Can we learn how to become a great leader? Or is leadership something that we’re born with? And what role does Siemens play in developing future talent?

Expect some tough ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’ questions for the CEO of Siemens.

Another musical interlude, this time from the wonderfully...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 16:16:00 +0200

Another musical interlude, this time from the wonderfully talented Marlon Roudette.

Towards A Cosmic Society - Let Nancy Abrams Blow Your Mind

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 15:58:00 +0200

Cosmologist Nancy Abram takes center stage with an ambition to thrill. “What is the biggest question faced by the human race?” she asks, as the crowd wakes up from their delayed lunch.

It would not take long for everyone’s eyes to be wide open in amazement, laughter and awe.

Abrams represents a school of scientists that are occupied with the study of the universe as a whole. And what they have found is that we - the human race - is not coincidental, random or in any way insignificant. This approach, she says, is “1700-year science.”

We are in fact central to everything. New evidence shows that we are central in form, time and space.

“Humans are made from stardust” Abrams educates, and goes on to show how we are intimately connected to the very fabrics of the universe, dark matter. As it turns out, we are also central in terms of size. From the biggest known scale of the universe to the smallest particles, the size of the human being is proportionally to be found in the middle.

Most importantly, however, we are central in time. Our generation is the first to fully understand the concept of space and time, and by that we are also handed a piece of motivation to act and solve the problems we face.

“Since the 1800s, CO2 levels in the atmosphere have doubled every 30 years. This will need to stop,” Abrams says. Now, as we understand where we belong to a pivotal moment in time, we can motivate ourselves to act in the face of our challenges.

“You can’t just tell people scary facts. They will run away,” Abrams says. “Real change comes from finding a whole new reality. This how we fall in love, how alcoholics recover. It’s change through a new identity, the real way to spiritual awakening.”

“Who we are is the sum total of our history. How far back we claim that history, is up to us. We are the first generation to realize this history. And realizing this story may be what is needed to impose the change.”

We may be the most significant generation ever to have existed, is the claim, and that in itself is an awe-inspiring thought.

But wait! There’s more!

Abrams is not entirely done yet! To make sure the message sinks in, she jumps to her laptop, microphone in hand, and burst out singing a sexy, catchy tune about corrupt scientists, lobbyists and the political malaise that sours our efforts towards creating a better earth.

It’s a wonderful, inspirational, abrupt moment - and one that triggers standing ovations as the last tunes run out. A superb performance from Abrams and a true DLD moment.

Well done, Abrams - you truly rocked the house!

See much more about Abrams work in cosmology here. And if you missed the song, do not worry, because we have a link right here… (Thanks to @PHenriettaK).

Mens Sana in Corpore Sano

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 15:21:30 +0200

Stress is possibly one the most common diseases in the Western world. Stressed individuals go the hospital much more often than healthy ones and according to numerous studies women tend to be more depressed than men.

“Traditionally if you were stressed they ‘d send you to the psychologist to fill questioners for hours. We’re actually starting to use blood tests to measure stress”, claims Hermona Soreq, professor of Molecular Neuroscience at the Hebrew University’s Edmond and Safra Centre for Brain Sciences.

Scientific studies show that women are more depressed than men, however life expectancy is higher when talking about females. “Stress is not necessarily a bad thing, the problem is when you cannot cope with it”, adds professor Soreq.

“In recent years it has been proven that stress is a direct consequence of inflammation”, she says. But how come inflammation can cause depression? The answer to this question is actually simpler than we may think.

According her “inflammation leads to an over production of blood cells and proteins, and this is what eventually causes stress and depression”,

In fact Soreq and her colleagues have proven that people with chronic pain are more stressed than anybody else. Their innovative study proves again that brain and body are highly interlinked.

Today more than ever: mens sana in corpore sano.

Here’s something you probably never saw before: Bavarian...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 14:26:35 +0200

Here’s something you probably never saw before: Bavarian Yodeling Reggae!

Wonderful music interlude with a lot of spark from Maria Reiser…

Touching tunes and beautiful voices of iLive2Lead girls yodeling...

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 14:12:00 +0200

Touching tunes and beautiful voices of iLive2Lead girls yodeling alongside old DLD friend Klaus Altmann.

Here you see the pipeline for the next generation of global women leaders.Around 3.10 pm this afternoon these bright young women between the age of 15 and 22 will host an interactive workshop to examine the core qualities of leadership.

Which values are shared by all cultures today? Does Generation X value the same qualities as baby boomers or are they seeking a new style of leadership? The girls of the non-profit organization iLive2Lead, founded by Laura Bode, have trained their high-level leadership skills six days before the conference.

On stage they will show off what they’ve learned.

An Intimate Story of Success

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 14:11:00 +0200

Sung-Joo Kim is the first Asian women to acquire a luxury brand after taking over MCM Holding AG. Being a rebel and a fighter helped her to her enormous success, she says as she rushes to the stage after arriving to Munich just an hour ago.

Kim is a remarkable woman. She is a Young Global Leader and was named one of Fast Company’s most Creative People in 2010. She speaks a clear impeccable English that oozes of thoughtfulness and consideration, as she shares an intimate story of an unlike success.

No wonder. As a student, she decided against her family’s will and “married her sweetheart” instead.

Facing an arranged marriage, the decision drew the family apart. She was disowned by her father, a rich industrial tycoon in South Korea, and was removed from the family tree.

The incident, however, didn’t stop her. On the contrary. “I was motivated, and began working my way to the top,” she says with a big smile.

She now holds a top position as a CEO of a successful fashion company, employing 830 people from 15 different countries. A position that she agrees is “rare for women to reach in the industry, sadly.”

She compares the way to the top as a mixture of “hard work and suffering” using an analogy from the world of dance.

“Everyone wants to be the ballerina in the Swan Lake. But very few realize how much that dancer, that person, suffered on her way to the role, how much it takes and how painful it can be. In fashion, it’s no different. There is a lot of work involved.”

Beware of the Youth-Quake!

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:47:55 +0200

Farah Pandith is the first ever Special Representative for muslims to the US government. Her role is to engage in dialogue and handle complicated muslim global issues - a job which is both demanding and rewarding at the same time.

Pandith has served three US presidents, but her works crosses party lines, cultures and religious backgrounds. An American Muslim born in India, she was raised in the US, but for the past two-and-a-half years, she has spent time traveling to more than 65 countries to reach out to muslim communities.

What she tries to do, she tells moderator Edith Schaff of Women without Borders, is to attack the issue of identity and the question of navigating between being young and muslim in a globalized world.

And this is no small task. There are 1.4 billion muslims today, about one third of the world’s population. What is perhaps even more challenging is that 65% of them are under 30, with many battling the divides between culture and religion.

“They grow up seeing the words ‘islam’ and ‘Muslim’ on the front pages of newspapers every day. We need to listen to these young people and learn.”

“There is a youth-quake going on in the world. Young people’s opinions matter. And that’s across genders.”

“They are really interested in building and giving back to communities. But we have to listen to solve their problems.”

With regards to women, one of the biggest challenges is to “find more voices that give alternative narratives for young muslim women.”

“In this regard, literacy is incredibly important.”

A big part of this battle can be won by moving beyond stereotypes and look for genuine grassroots engagement, she says. It’s a bottom-up approach that can help move mountains.

Artists, local community leaders, social networkers, rappers - every little bid on what it means to be young and muslim today can prove an invaluable help in the fight for better understanding.

Extremism is “real” and needs to be thought careful about in the name and progress and peace, Pandith ends.

“But we need to understand the many versions of Islam that is out there today, and not just the stereotypes. It is critically important that we think about the multifaceted ways we can push back.”

Of Responsive and Responsible Innovation

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:25:19 +0200

It doesn’t matter whether it is a corporate social responsibility or innovation, dialogue and partnership is a crucial stepping-stone towards success. In both instances the shift from a top-down approach towards a more democratic one can untapped an existing potential that largely has not been utilized yet.

Lindt (DHL): First talk then do

Often, companies develop a product and only after they are done with that they look around for a potential buyer. That is wrong. You need to keep the (potential) consumer in mind right from the beginning, says Irma Lindt of DHL adding that, paradoxically, buyers – or end users – are often not really consulted in instances where there is a product or a service developed with their well-being in mind.

Just consider the problem of waste disposal or an issue of regular traffic jams in large cities. We have all the data, we have numbers, but we don’ t know what these mean, argues Lindt adding that this – or rather the result of this state of affairs – is yet another reason why to opt for an alternative model that is user-centered. Design thinking is an example of such an approach, Lindt says.

Design thinking - or more generally alternative to the prevailing approach - concentrates on a (more intensive) dialogue. It means to go to the streets rather than rely too much on general market studies; it means to work with simple prototypes that yield more honest and rich feedback; and it means involving partners which leads to new ideas, faster implementation and better scalability.

Seling (GoTeach): Doing CSR our way

Corporate Social Responsibility is often heavily externally determined, Michael Porter, an authoritative voice on CSR, says. Many companies feel like that they simply have to do it. So they do it without making it a part of their business strategy. DHL opted for an alternative path that helps disadvantaged and yields benefits to the firm at the same time. The idea is to develop existing potential.

DHL does business in many countries all around the world. As such, it is very much concerned about – and influenced by – the quality of education. This is why it decided to get involved in this area. It chose the NGO SOS Children’s Villages as its partner. “It was because of its very holistic approach that contains an education of kids living in difficult conditions,” says Christoph Seling of GoTeach.

These kids, this talent, can and should be nurtured from early stages says Seling. Kids involved are being provided with basic soft skills, with career guidance, and with a first work experience. This benefits both sides. Moreover, the company already plans for a deepening of the program that should enable the cooperation of developed talents on social innovations and business solutions. Yet again, the idea is to employ communication and partnership to untap a potential that would otherwise remained hidden behind the veil of disadvantageous conditions.

Molecular Art and Digital Disortion

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:20:00 +0200

Photo: Biota by Suzanne Anker - ”Sea sponges, they look like brains and are 70% identical to the human genetic structure.”

Photo: MRI Butterfly by Suzanne Anker

“The speed of thought is what we are currently working on to fully understand ourselves,” says Suzanne Anker, a visual artist and theorist working at the intersection of art and the biological sciences. She explores the ways in which concepts in neuroscience research have been incorporated into visual art practice and contemporary culture. In a vivid tour through neuroculture, she follows the status of the brain in the art world. She shows that technological changes and biomedical sciences influence our social, ethical and cultural values in society.

Introduced as a very communicative person who is heavily influencing the art world, DLD’s own art curator and long-time friend Hans Ulrich Obrist brought next to Anker another unique artist along, Aleksandra Domanović who shares her thoughts on statues and which effect they can have on small communities. Her own work pieces can be downloaded on her website and printed out. Boundaries blur between digital and real world, and the art scene is the one daring enough to change our perceptions before it enters our everyday lives.

“First the idea comes, and then the material,” both artists agree. Domanović seems to have a preference for sculptures, but is also heavily involved in digital art works. Anker works in a variety of mediums ranging from digital sculpture and installation to large-scale photography. She puts the process like this:

“It’s like picking up the imagination and then holding it in your hand.”

Alanis Morissette: "Anger is a Very Important Driving Force"

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 12:43:00 +0200

“Anger creates intimacy; hiding your feelings, whether it’s love or anger, destroys intimacy and could be self-destructive”, says Alanis Morissette to the DLDwomen audience on a really inspiring talk moderated by Maria Furtwängler-Burda.

Alanis Morissette made a surprise visit where she offered to share insights on womenhod, artistic expression, social activism, relationships and wellness. The outcome was a remarkably enlightening panel debate where Alanis managed to project some of the many secrets behind her massive successes as an artist, woman and mother.

“Thank you much for coming, Alanis. It’s so nice being here with you”, says Maria Furtwängler-Burda. “You are such a committed artist, where do you find all that courage to do what you do?”

“I am honoured to be here Maria,” the singer says. “Thanks for inviting me. As for your question, I think it’s about lack of censorship, not being afraid of who you are.”

“In the old days women were not allowed to show their anger, but we actually need that anger. These are feelings we have to focus on, but as an artist, I need to take the courage to confront them and use them on my behalf.”

“Alanis, do you think men and women are different, or are we just equal?,” the DLD Chairwoman further inquires. To Morissette, the answer is a combination of context and connection.

“We are built incredibly different. In today’s context men provide different things than in the old days”, claims the artist. “It’s not about providing money anymore. For instance, if my husband wasn’t taking care of my child now I couldn’t be here. We, women, are moving to a connective version of ourselves, to interdependency”.

As far as artistic expression is concerned the Canadian artist points out: “silence is very inspiring, I like it because it allows me to hear myself. For me there are two stages within the creative process; firstly I write for myself – this is the spiritual part of it – and the second stage is when I share my feelings with public using my voice and music. The most important aspect of creation is connecting with your inner self; creations allows for catharsis.”

Morissette has not just won 16 Juno Awards and 7 Grammys, she’s also a very proud mother. “Being a mum is a big commitment and I have to confess that coffee became my best new friend. Women can actually serve and be in the driving seat”.

“Alanis, yesterday different women expressed their mottos in front of the DLDwomen audience… what one would you say is yours?” Furtwängler-Burda asks, as the session comes to an all-too-soon end.

The reply from Morissette is prompt and delightful:

“Hello you little piece of god, how are you doing?”

A huge thanks to Morissette for joining DLDwomen and for sharing her visions with our guests today. Her new album “HAVOC AND BRIGHT LIGHTS” will be out later this year, and we will be sure to bring you more news on that as soon as it is released.

Remember that you can also review the entire speech by Morissette on our website, in a few moments, thanks to our partners from Livestream.com.

How to Fall in Love With Your Work (Again)

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 11:56:00 +0200

“We do things that we are good at, but it’s not necessarily something we love. Like PowerPoint.” Denice Kronau, Chief Diversity Officer Siemens AG, is an expert on burnouts, and today she brought a recipe for happiness to the Enzian Hall.

PowerPoint is a special skills of hers - she’s damn good at it - but it’s also something she hates doing. It’s the perfect example of how millions of professionals across are doing things wrong, and it could end of very costly, she warned.

When we start out working, what feeds us is a “sense of accomplishment, or recognition.” But soon, the joy of the paycheck and health insurance takes over as the main motivation for your work. Over time, though, this will lead to exhaustion.

Exhaustions, burnouts and tiredness makes us run away. We give up careers with no plans - as long as we stop working. And this is a trap.

“It’s a mistake not to ask anyone for help when you are burned out. I thought I could sleep it away. I couldn’t,” Kronau said.

Don’t just quit. Take a step back, look at what made you happy, and “rediscover what motivated you in the first place.”

“It’s about aha-moments, the rediscovery of your job. You don’t have to change lifestyle, you just have to look at your job and remember why you did it in the first place.”

The long-term solution is “to fall in love again with the work aspects that inspired you when you started out.”

This is a lesson many a busy CEO could surely carry with them. “We are human beings, not human doings,” Kronau added. “We tend to feed the urgent, while starving the important.”