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Success Story: Successful placement of a management position for the Chinese market

Symbolfoto: © Fotolia / gustavofrazao

Personnel consultant Hans Ulrich Gruber was able to fill a vacant management position for the Chinese market within the international automotive company Koki.

To fill key positions for German companies in international markets is an exciting challenge. Especially, if it involves positions in a specialized industry with a detailed profile of requirements. Personnel consultant Hans Ulrich Gruber did just that. For the company Koki, which has around 1.300 employees and subsidiaries in China and India, he placed the current Executive Vice President (EVP) in China.

The often used saying, finding the needle in the haystack, is appropriate at times. Like for example when finding the suitable candidate for a key position. When the profile of requirements is so specific that only a handful of people are worth considering for the position. The personnel consultant Hans Ulrich Gruber had such a request from KOKI TECHNIK Transmission System GmbH. The company was looking for someone with a manufacturing background and experience in the German automotive industry, who is familiar with Chinese culture and has a high social competence and strong networks.

“The automotive sector is very particular”, says Ralph Rumberg, CEO of KOKI TECHNIK Transmission System GmbH. “Therefore, it doesn’t make sense to hire someone who doesn’t know the industry. The same goes for the Chinese mindset. We highly appreciate that Mr. Gruber only introduced us to fitting candidates and that he persistently walked the extra mile for us until we found the right candidate with Mr. Geiger”, says the CEO. Additionally, the personnel consultant Hans Ulrich Gruber has an “excellent network” and is able to adjust to the personality of his respective counterpart.

The new Executive Vice President for Koki China, Thomas Geiger, is satisfied with his new position. “Hans Ulrich Gruber, gave me exactly the environment that I’m used to and that I enjoy working in. Furthermore, he made sure, that there was a fit on a human level as well, which was really positive for me”, says the experienced manager. Especially because there are new challenges to overcome on a daily basis. The day-to-day work and the mindset in China are very different from the German way of working. “Sometimes there are missing spare parts, then employees and in addition to that we are currently working on important strategic negotiations. It is important to face the daily challenges without losing track of the big picture”.

To put people into a position where they feel comfortable and can perform their best, that is Hans Ulrich Gruber’s profession. “It always brings me joy, when we succeed in bringing the two different sides together”, says the personal consultant. He knows the corporate environment and its requirements from his personal experience as a former top manager of an international company. Which is why he is often requested as a specialist when German companies need to fill key positions abroad.