Marketing talk on crisis and communication: serious topic, nice evening

The fourth and last Marketing Talk in 2019 was also by far the most successful: Thanks to over 120 visitors, the MK and Werbewoche team was pleased to announce that the event series has now established itself in Zurich. In contrast to other industry events, the aim of the Marketing Talks is to provide guests with professional input, but above all to inspire them - and to allow them to network afterwards in a relaxed and informal atmosphere.

At the beginning of the event, Anna Kohler, the journalistic director of MK and Werbewoche and host of the evening, outlined the thoroughly serious topic: It was about crises - and the possibilities of dealing with them (for example via communication). In other words, something that everyone is familiar with from their everyday professional life, but probably also from their private life.

Anna Kohler began by formulating some of her own thoughts on how something new can be started out of crises: "It is a matter of throwing off ballast, throwing illusions overboard and then, in the best case, taking the steps honestly, gratefully and courageously that are needed to perhaps even grow beyond oneself," said the publicist.

Then came the input presentation by Dr. Alexander Haldemann, CEO of Metadesign. The brand agency has been helping clients such as Apple, VW and Swiss Life to present themselves to the outside world since 1979. It is clear that this also includes dealing with crises: "Today, customers are no longer just recipients of brand messages, but also transmitters and multipliers," said Haldemann in his presentation.

Mature customers therefore mean a lot of work for brands - because their feedback, expressed publicly, can cause a lot of damage. Communication in crises must therefore primarily be aimed at restoring trust. If used wisely, the brand core can serve as a kind of "anchor" that companies can hold on to.

The fireside chat then brought together two men who had themselves had to live through the most serious crises in recent years: Former mega-CEO Thomas Middelhoff and Fr. Klaus Mertes SJ, the rector of the Jesuit College of St. Blasien and Germany's most prominent abuse investigator.

Thomas Middelhoff had a life most people only dream of: As CEO of Bertelsmann and KarstadtQuelle (later Arcandor), he earned millions, dined with heads of state and flew around the globe in a private jet. But then "Big T," as the media and colleagues called him, took a nosedive: Arcandor's bankruptcy was followed by court proceedings and finally a three-year prison sentence for embezzlement and tax evasion. Released from prison in 2017, he radically turned his life around. In his bestsellers "A115 - Der Sturz" and "Schuldig: Vom Scheitern und Wiederaufstehen," Middelhoff takes a hard look at himself, also blaming his fate on the arrogance and greed that had him in their grip for many years.

Did he expect to become one of the most sought-after speakers on the subject of failure, moderator Johannes Hapig wanted to know from Thomas Middelhoff. His answer: "No. And I wouldn't have wished it either." Nevertheless, according to the former mega-CEO, his life is more fulfilling and more beautiful today than it used to be. He has time for himself, has real hobbies for the first time and uses his experience to warn young people against making similar mistakes.

P. Klaus Mertes SJ is the director of the renowned Jesuit college and boarding school in St. Blasien in the Black Forest. But he gained notoriety for the post he held before: as rector of Canisius College in Berlin, where in 2010 he triggered the first major wave of revelations of sexual and physical abuse of young people at church (and later non-church) educational institutions in Germany. While civil society and German politics hold Mertes in the highest esteem, he is - even today, ten years later - discredited and shunned by conservative circles within the Catholic Church as a "fouler of the nest".

Would he, whose crisis communication demanded numerous heavy sacrifices of himself, do everything the same way again? Mertes answered without hesitation, "Yes, of course!" and earned a prolonged round of applause.

A traditional feature of the Marketing Talks is the musical setting, which is usually provided by young, innovative artists. This time it was Arthur Henry, multiple Swiss beatboxing champion.

Finally, the fourth Marketing Talk came to a close with an aperitif. The guests took the opportunity to talk personally with the speakers and to make new contacts among themselves. And many were already sure: They will be back for the next Marketing Talk in March 2020.