Is there a particular innovation pioneer or experience that has infected your thinking?
Annika Leopold: It's not so easy to say what infected me. It wasn't a single person, but it actually came relatively early on, namely when I chose to study after my apprenticeship at a large domestic company. I already realized back then that I needed something different. I wanted to create new connections, do something with knowledge and started studying International Information Management in Hildesheim, which was a relatively new course. And that actually infected me a bit. The reason for this was that it was a very interdisciplinary course of study that dealt with information management, information science, but also intercultural exchange.
As students, we always had the feeling that we were learning everything and nothing, but nothing really in detail. But today I realize that we actually learned quite a lot about future skills back then. How can analytical thinking be combined with empathy? How can we better empathize with others? But it was also about technology, such as neural networks and semantic technologies. Bringing these things together was very exciting for me.
Thanks to my basic training beforehand, I also always had the opportunity to work as a student trainee, which allowed me to finance my studies myself. This also gave me the opportunity to work in the company later on, at that time in the Center of E -Excellence newly founded by Siemens at Munich Airport, where business accelerator start-ups were supported. I worked there in knowledge management and that was just amazing - it really infected me and I knew that I wanted to work in that area one day.
You worked for 15 years in this company as a process consultant. What motivated you to become self-employed?
Annika Leopold: Of course, I appreciated the development opportunities in the Group and I would say that I had the perfect playing field for it, purely in terms of my skills in consulting. However, there were also limits. I created numerous concepts, many of which ultimately ended up in a drawer due to corporate guidelines or political aspects that made implementation difficult. Then there were some family events that got me thinking and I asked myself: what am I actually spending 10 hours a day on that I can fill with life, what can make it worthwhile? And somehow my heart stopped beating. Then I decided that I didn't want it that way anymore.
At the time, I was lucky enough to be able to combine things very well. I already had my first child. And then I put out feelers and decided to go for the serendipity effect, so to speak. For those who don't know what serendipity is, it's "lucky circumstances" that aren't planned, but simply happen by chance and result in new opportunities. I actually found a job advertisement for a freelance project manager in the field of marketing and communication that really got me hooked. And that was the first leap where I said, hey, I'll just give it a try. And that's how it started.
You also set up the Digitalwerkstatt Forchheim. What is that exactly?
Annika Leopold: The Digitalwerkstatt is a mixture of an event space, i.e. a creative space in which inspiring working environments come together with methods and tools. At the same time, we are a competence center for new work and customer centricity, i.e. we advise and support companies in their digital transformation. At the same time, I wanted to create a meeting place in rural areas where chance encounters are encouraged and where new connections are created between people who would never have met before. That's how it all started. But it wasn't planned that way, it just happened that way. So, the journey is the reward, as is so often the case in life.
The digital workshop is not a closed-off space, but is located in the middle of a real workshop. Why was this particular space chosen?
Annika Leopold: Perhaps it was, as the local press once said, an innovative form of family reunion. My husband and I built the building in 2016 and a large part of it is a truck workshop - he is the Managing Director of Leopold's Commercial Vehicle Center. So we use synergies and this mix of sectors also inspires me, because I don't normally have so much to do with craftsmanship in everyday life and completely different disciplines are required.
Back then, I was often on site with customers and realized that I couldn't fully develop my own way of working and creativity. That's why I decided that we should also create a synergy center in our building, where ideas could be cross-fertilized. We also have various other service providers in the building, such as a car rental company and TÜV.
The digital workshop as it is now was actually another coincidence. Because the large event space with 200 square meters was originally reserved for a camping provider who wanted to move in but backed out. And then we had the shell up there and I thought, okay, what can we do with it? In 2018, we held the first book sprint with various experts on the topic of the fascination of New Work. We did it in the shell of the building and I realized that the space had a special atmosphere. And that's how things got rolling and how the digital workshop became what it is today.
What does it generally take to spark innovation in a region?
Annika Leopold: Today, we are much further ahead in rural areas than we were back then. In 2017, 2018, innovation centers or exchange or co-working were not yet so widespread in rural areas. A lot has really happened in recent years. But that's why it's still the case today that many people don't even know what the digital workshop does and what its actual potential is.
I think we need to slowly bring people from a wide range of disciplines on board. Now we are lucky that we are very close to the highway, so we are easily accessible. I think people need to be inspired. We all need social contact and want to develop ourselves. In 2017, I started organizing a series of events on the topic of "digital detox". This means that even if we're talking about digital skills, we take care of ourselves and our own resources. And since I've always thought in terms of open networks, I invited various people to work on different topics such as voice training, visual storytelling, i.e. graphic recording or sketchnoting and completely different things - we experimented and saw who would come, who was interested and what would come out of it. That was the first impetus to offer further training topics ourselves. I looked at how local strengths could be used. We have Franconian Switzerland locally and have a very smart managing director for integrated rural development, for example, who is also interested in how people come together who may not have been together before. I think it's about feeling your way in and seeing who is ready, taking people along and seeing what comes out of it and always proceeding in small steps. It's not about imposing, but really looking at what is developing slowly and continuously. And when people are enthusiastic, they talk about it and that's how it develops.
You enjoy learning and teaching others. Why has this become one of your main focuses?
Annika Leopold: I can't tell you exactly how I got into it. I don't like school or exam situations. So, if you ask me what knowledge I have left from my school days, it's unfortunately not much - my sons always reflect that back to me. I don't know if you know the Moving Motivators. These are the ten motivators that say what really influences me in a work context. And I've found that the motivators for me are, to a large extent, freedom, curiosity and influence. I really like to pick out new things and see how I can combine things in new ways, what might come out of it. I think I'm relatively fearless when it comes to taking risks and seeing where that takes us. Just like with the book sprint or other things: I don't know at the beginning what will come of it, but we simply believe that we can do it. No matter what comes out of it, what we have is good.
I've noticed that I just really enjoy creating things or small learning nuggets for others and realizing that, hey, something is happening and I can make a difference. When people tell me that they're not creative and can't do it and then you manage to make their eyes light up with little playful units and say, wow, that's a lever that's moved. That makes me really happy. And I notice that myself in my own development. I have a different spectrum today than perhaps 15 years ago. And I sometimes thought, how can I get the hang of my studies? But even back then, it was actually going in exactly this direction. And for me, it's really the enthusiasm to combine fun with work and to see that when you combine fun and work, the result is real efficiency and performance. After all, we don't work for the sake of it, but because we want something to come out of it. But if this is done with joy, then much more can be achieved.
What advice would you give to companies that are currently undergoing a transformation process?
Annika Leopold: What is always important to me is to first acknowledge the uncertainty in the transformation. It's completely normal to be uncertain, that's part of it. The important thing is how I can strengthen people psychologically so that they can still act well in the face of uncertainty and have the confidence to make decisions. That really is the path of small steps. And also to be able to deal with setbacks, to see what I can make of them.
I also advise people to look at other industries, not just their own. Personally, and this is something I also like about my job, I work for NGOs as well as for extremely process-optimized industries such as the automotive industry. Both can learn an incredible amount from each other. And that's where I always try to bridge the gap. In principle, I advise them to take inspiration from others and always look at how I can apply this to myself and my individual situation. Because problems are always undiscovered opportunities. And yes, a positive attitude is the be-all and end-all and I think it's important to start and see how I can approach it and really take small steps and accept that a transformation always involves three steps forward and two steps back and that it can't be imposed.
How do you deal with professional and personal setbacks?
Annika Leopold: Setbacks are always one of those things, what do I call a setback? When I think about it, that was around 2015, when we were already building the new workshop and therefore also the digital workshop. At the time, I had been working for a good customer for a very long time, where internal things had changed so much - including personnel - that I could no longer keep up. In other words, I was in total trouble. That was a setback for me because I thought I couldn't really achieve what I wanted to achieve and it was like a small defeat - with my biggest customer at the time. On top of that, my husband had a severe slipped disc and had to have an operation. However, as the managing director of a small company, he is always the front man. That means he has to function - it's hardly possible without him. We had two small children at the time. My mother-in-law was terminally ill and we had the new building. So it was clear to me that I had to step back. The way for me was to say that I would take myself out and focus on what was important at the time - regardless of my own preferences and goals.
What I learned from my mother: If you can't change one thing, change your attitude towards it. Be prepared to say, even if your head is spinning and you have a lot on your mind, that you can't do it right now - sit it out and make something of it. Because it's always about taking care of yourself and reflecting on what's important to you. And I think that's really what it's all about. So dealing with setbacks is always about knowing yourself best and saying, what are my energy thieves and my sources of energy and pursuing them.
An important point I can only make, especially when we talk about innovation pioneers, is that people always think they have to be at the cutting edge. If I don't move on now, then the train has left the station. And in my experience, the train never leaves without you if the intrinsic motivation is there and people believe in themselves and naturally continue to develop throughout their lives. That's why I believe that you always have to deal with setbacks, accept them and see what you need. And then you have to start again and simply look at where there are opportunities, what results from them and how you can build on them.
The interview was conducted by Dr. Tanja Jovanovic, Head of Marketing and Innovation Management, Member of the Management Board, Bayern Innovativ GmbH, Nuremberg.
Listen to the full interview as a podcast:
Digital transformation - SME learning culture - Innovation pioneer: Annika Leopold
In this episode,Dr. Tanja Jovanovic talks to Annika Leopold. She is the founder of Digitalwerkstatt Forchheim and an innovation pioneer. She talks about what drives her, what role the region plays and how sharing knowledge helps us all move forward.
