Serge Winterhalder

IESE Business School, University of Navarra

“Perceptive, empathetic and optimistic professional ready to make his mark on the world.”

Hometown: Munich, Bavaria

Fun Fact About Yourself: Desire overcomes pain! I once took two hours to finish a heavenly delicious bowl of Korean ramen in Soul while crying and sweating due to an otherworldly spicy sauce.

Undergraduate School and Major: Graduated from Hochschule Furtwangen and Shanghai University for Science and Technology as B.Sc. in International Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: BMW AG, Manager Module leader and Engineering Team leader Interior

What makes the case method so attractive as a means to learn and become a better manager?  Personally, I have always been drawn to open and direct communication, preferably in a face-to-face environment. In my professional career, the biggest problems for my team were solved by sitting in one room, putting our heads together, and leaving only after we agreed on a solution. I think the case method will resemble my preferred work environment very accurately and it will give me the opportunity to learn about different industries and their problems. In addition, I believe the opinions of the diverse group of peers I will engage with will lift the intensity of new insights even further.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of the school’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Aside from this amazing student body that IESE admits every year, I was especially drawn to their approach to people.  I clearly saw during my entire research process for my ideal MBA Program that for IESE, the individual student is its focus. Starting with the initial contact with Admissions, I was encouraged to self-reflect and build up self-awareness before even applying for the MBA program. The Admissions from IESE gave me the feeling that I was already part of the school, even at this early stage. This feeling continued over the whole process. Among all the events that I attended to get to know the school better,  I can say that no other school gave me the same impression. I believe that by joining IESE, I will become part of a caring family that will not only shape what I’ll be on paper, but also the person that I’ll become. It will give me the opportunity to pass on the same feeling to prospective students yet to come.

What club or activity excites you most at this school? I am looking forward to peek into the Tech or Finance Club as well as the Start-up and Latin American Business Club.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: I think the biggest accomplishment in my career was the team spirit and collaborative mindset that I was able to introduce into an otherwise somewhat harsh and competitive work environment. As Team Leader at BMW in China, I worked with a cross-functional team of experts in their various fields, including quality assurance, manufacturing, finance, and development – as well as numerous third-party suppliers and contractors. Since each of these teams was driven by their own specific goals, projects often ended up in seemingly endless disputes with late or no outcomes that nearly always required escalation to the project management. To solve this hassle, I started by understanding every single one of them, combining their goals and then coordinating and leading the teams towards an overall shared goal.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? My career at BMW was on its right path with a quite defined way ahead. It was rather clear where my next steps would take me. However, my time in China changed my point of view and it got me to think in different directions. I began to see the world from another angle with all its challenges and opportunities. With my long-held intention for further education, I started my pursuit of an MBA. By doing so, coupled with the self-assessment that accompanied the process, I reached a point where I knew that I wanted to make a change for myself and take a “leap of faith” into a direction unknown. What better way to do so then starting a full-time MBA?

What other MBA programs did you apply to? During my research for the MBA, I was planning to apply to several Business Schools like LBS, ESADE, AND INSEAD. At the end, I decided that there can only be one school which would be suitable for me and worth the risk to resign from my current job. And that was IESE.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process?

“Which conversation had the biggest impact on your life and why?”

This was a question I didn’t expect and never encountered during my research for the interview. I got stuck for a bit as I had to think about my response on the spot. And what is the answer to a question like this? Many conversations in different situations in your life will affect you and guide you in your life. It could be the pep talk from your mother before the first day of school, the life lessons from an old friend who gave up corporate life to become an artist, or just the advice from IESE Admissions to become clearer about why you want to do an MBA and if a part-time concept would really fulfill that need. Thank you again for that.

How did you determine your fit at various schools? I reached out to many different schools, talked to them, and joined meetings and events since I was quite unsure what I am looking for at that point of time. However, my way of thinking about the MBA changed during the process. At first, I was just thinking about the certification, but then the idea of something new grew in my mind and I followed my gut. I wanted change for myself, and I wanted it with a school that resembles my values of modern work ethic. It had to be a school with a big focus on the individual, teaching in a direction of people. Finally, I engaged schools with a different mindset and had other questions, which have been answered by IESE the way I feel more than comfortable with.

What was your defining moment and how did it prepare you for business school? Growing up in Germany, I had a very comfortable but “linear” life including easy access to education, an open job market, and freedom to choose where to live and who to spend time with. As everything went comparably well, I never felt the urge to change anything on my path– that is, before 3-5 years of living in China. Here I saw so much potential and dedication to hard work that I began to question my own comfort. If the people who have fewer possibilities try so hard to achieve greatness, who am I – coming from a more liberal and freer of choice country – to not at least do the same? I realized I am sitting in a comfort zone and wasting potential that I could give back to this world. So, my next step was the application for an MBA, with the foresight to change this situation in the upcoming future.

What is your favorite company and what could business students learn from them? One of my all-time favorites would have to be Disney, although not necessarily as much for its commercial accomplishments, company culture, or the impact its stories have on its audience. Some of you might know the term “Disney Kid”, referring to those of us who grew up with the animated movies of Pinocchio, Aladdin, The Lion King and so many others. Disney instilled values and morals through these films, inspiring creativity and promoting an idealistic image of the world, love and equality. It is still now capturing millions of people in the spheres of its storytelling. In my opinion, a lesson to be learned from Disney and its impact on parts of the society is this: As a worldwide-operating, generations-spanning, value-establishing company, you have a responsibility concerning the influence on your customer base. This is especially true for the youngest of them, ensuring it will not have a negative effect on their future or society.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MBA CLASS OF 2022 AT IESE BUSINESS SCHOOL