Diary of a Future CEO #1: The trials and tribulations of everyday CEO life

Jung von Matt Switzerland has a new CEO. At least temporarily, because at the end of last year the agency was looking for the "Future CEO" - a young up-and-coming talent to accompany CEO Roman Hirsbrunner through the daily routine and madness of a creative agency for two months. At the beginning of March, the time had come: Sven Würgler, who enjoys the title of "Future CEO," started the service. What he experiences in his extraordinary role, what learnings he passes on and what his daily agency life is like, the 22-year-old reveals in his new column on advertisingweek.ch - and in doing so also gives hope to all those who have been hoping for a LinkedIn friendship with Roman Hirsbrunner for a long time.

"Future CEO" Sven Würgler on the trials and tribulations of everyday CEO life

First of all: Roman Hirsbrunner, CEO of Jung von Matt Switzerland, seems to me to be quite happy with his job. So if you were hoping that he would leave with the public search for the Future CEO - sorry, I have to disappoint you. Those who are hoping that Roman's LinkedIn request, which has been pending for a long time, will be accepted - there seems to be a glimmer of hope on the horizon.

As Trainee Future CEO, I have the privilege of accompanying Roman through his everyday life for two months. But that doesn't mean that I just portray Roman on social media and otherwise wait at my seat for the next assignment. No, I sit in meetings every day, listen, talk, ask questions and give my assessment. Just what a CEO does.

Exciting opportunity for a 22-year-old

As a 22-year-old, this is of course an incredibly exciting opportunity for me and is also taken seriously by the Jung von Matt family. We have an opinion, is one of the seven guiding principles - and I'm asked for mine every day.

My first learning: The job is as stressful as you'd imagine. Roman starts work at 6 a.m., and it rarely ends before 7 p.m. The meetings are booked back to back. The meetings are booked back to back, every half hour the topic changes completely. That's damn exhausting. When events or dinners with customers come up, it sometimes takes much longer. In addition to a lot of passion and energy, you also need to be able to hold your liquor - casual chats are quickly interrupted by serious questions, so you have to be fit and alert between the ears.

From now on, I'll be allowed to report on my experiences here on a weekly basis. Censorship-free from the heart of the Jung von Matt world, so to speak. But before I sign off for this week, here's a bonus tip: Never underestimate the CEO assistant. You're welcome.

Sven Würgler reports on the trials and tribulations of the agency world at Jung von Matt as Trainee Future CEO for two months. In his normal life, he studies business administration at the University of Bern and works for his video production company Lymbus AG.

And where are the female Future CEOs? That's what we wanted to know from JvM CEO Roman Hirsbrunner. The agency head explains: "The answer is as simple as it is in need of discussion: We had a few interested inquiries from women, but no applications. We will take another close look at the reason for this when we repeat the program. One reason is certainly that the title 'CEO' is still very male. In people's minds, but unfortunately also in reality. That's why we're calling on Future CEOs today: We're looking forward to your application for the next round!"