AeronauticsVarious industries and constantly new insights
Alexander
Project Director
Alexander has been working as a Project Director at the Frankfurt site since 2022.
For him, ALTEN’s extensive portfolio is a clear advantage. You can get to know different industries and constantly gain new insights that broaden your horizons. At ALTEN, you have the chance to break new ground and expand your knowledge in a wide variety of areas – for example, by helping to develop the products of the future, whether in the automotive industry, the medical sector, or other sectors.
What is your job at ALTEN?
I am Project Director for the Rhine-Main area. My focus is on the automotive sector. My team and I take care of the entire product life cycle, from pre-development to end-customer-relevant product quality, from software development to documentation. Our projects are diverse in terms of topics and industries.
My working day begins in the morning with structuring the day. This is followed by regular status meetings. I give my team maximum freedom to identify their own solutions but also support them to ensure that current projects are completed. My responsibilities also include supporting the tendering process. It is important to identify what the customer’s actual problem is, because the solution can often be different. Considering their problem and our expertise, we then define and propose the best possible set-up for both parties.
In addition, I am responsible for the further development of my employees, administrative tasks, and superregional issues.
What do you love about your job?
I particularly enjoy the recognition you get for your work, especially when you are willing to break new ground.
What do your projects typically look like?
A project always begins with initial contact with the customer and building a relationship with them. It is important to find out what the customer understands about the project and how the customer’s budget can be used optimally. During this offer phase, we discuss how we can structure the project, what options we have, and what expertise is required. Ultimately, quality and performance must be as good as possible to carry out further projects with the customer in the future.
At the start of the project, there is a joint meeting with the project manager, the team, and the customer to align the different expectations for the project.
After that, we keep an eye on the results and the success of the project, using the usual project management methods (both agile and waterfall) and making plans for improvement to always get the best results. It’s also important to me that everyone feels appreciated and happy, both our employees and our customers.
One example project deals with start-up validation in the automotive industry. Before a car goes into series production, it is tested on a project line to ensure that the quality of the parts and processes, as well as their interaction, are flawless for the overall quality. With our support, we ensure that the next generation of vehicles meets the quality standards we all expect.
What has been your coolest project so far?
The most exciting and complex project so far is setting up HIL test benches together with our customer. We are responsible for hardware development and hardware setup, but also for model adaptation and model integration. The project is particularly varied, and you have different responsibilities that all work together in a signal chain. The main thing here is to work with the project manager to bring together many different personalities to form a functioning and supportive team. This is especially important given that we are an international team and, as you know, test benches must be handled to be set up.
What skills are particularly important for working in your team?
Foresight, solution orientation in line with your role in the team, curiosity, and the ability to draw on existing knowledge. Because each of our customers has a problem and we have the solution, but sometimes we must find it ourselves.
What is it like working in your team?
The team is very project oriented. We don’t have fixed office days – the customer comes first, followed by internal coordination. In my team, I have five project managers in Germany and five more worldwide. We work together and divide tasks among ourselves, especially during stressful times. We try to meet in person once a quarter.
What is your management style?
I use a visionary management style, which means I work a lot on employee motivation and alignment. If that doesn’t work, I work with clear statements and instructions but always try to put them in the context of the vision.
What have you learned recently?
Even, or perhaps especially, in senior management positions, you must take responsibility for yourself and others to achieve an optimal work-life balance, for example. I have also learned that through targeted persuasion, you can find solutions together that do not override individuals in their positions, enabling you to achieve the overarching goal – a successful company.