100 days ago, Kim Engels took over the CEO position at Converto. Time to draw a first conclusion. How Kim has experienced the first months, what his vision is for Converto and what it is like to lead a team that works remotely, he tells in the following interview.
Kim, you have now completed your first 100 days as CEO of Converto – how would you briefly summarise them?
Kim Engels: Super exciting! The speed at which ideas are developed and implemented at Converto is simply impressive. It's an absolute speed boat and it's incredibly fun to work with the team, to develop new approaches and products and then to implement them in strategies together with our customers.
Back in November, you said in an interview that you were "stepping into very big shoes" – did you manage to fill them?
Kim Engels: I hope so. But seriously – I think Matteo and I complement each other in many ways and are still an absolutely important and integral part of Converto. Especially when it comes to the strategic points of the company's development, he continues to be the one who helps me massively. Especially in the first weeks and months, he really had my back completely so that I could familiarise myself and I have to say I am very grateful for that.
I hope that I will also find the time in the future to really take care of everyone and to seek regular exchange, because that is simply extremely important. – Kim Engels, Converto CEO
What was your personal highlight in the first 100 days?
Kim Engels: The meetings with our team. Working with the team is really a highlight, I was very happy about that. You just notice the cohesion and how well the team really works together and also develops and implements ideas – and that is a way of working that I enjoy incredibly much.
The team mostly works remotely – what was it like for you to join them and what does that mean for you in the managing position?
Kim Engels: That's a good point. As I said, the team meetings were my real highlights, and I don't necessarily just mean the face-to-face meetings. And yes, remote work requires taking more time for the whole team. I think there's still room for improvement here, but the team in particular took a lot of time in the first few weeks to train me, to get me on board and to welcome me. Accordingly, I hope that I will also find the time in the future to really take care of everyone and to seek regular exchange, because that is simply extremely important. Apart from that, the whole "remote" issue is actually nothing unusual for me. Since I'm on appointments and on the road a lot anyway, it's the standard way for me to work.
What is your vision for Converto?
Kim Engels: My vision is very clear: to let Converto grow internationally and to continue to be an innovation leader. In doing so, we have to make sure that it is a healthy growth. With a good, stable team that continues to enjoy working for us. And if we succeed in doing that, I am more than satisfied, because the entire team is what makes Converto.
I believe that the entire industry is heading for a paradigm shift here, but it is also urgently necessary. – Kim Engels, Converto CEO
The digital marketing industry currently has to react to many innovations. What do you see as the biggest challenge(s) in the near future?
Kim Engels: Definitely the development of data use. Currently, this is where we see the greatest need for clarification. In my opinion, the market will have to adapt massively in regard of data use, especially if all the US players realign themselves. You can already see that this will be happening – but we don't want to wait for that. We are already very active, for example in the area of campaign control without 3rd party data. We are already very successful with this in our campaigns. I believe that the entire industry is heading for a paradigm shift here, but it is also urgently necessary.
What are you looking forward to in the next 100 days?
Kim Engels: The further development of our client campaigns. There are a few things in the starting blocks that I think will be very exciting. Especially with regard to the use of data, innovative approaches and solutions for new campaigns and also new strategic approaches that we are currently developing. And I think that we will place some really good campaign innovations for our clients on the market. And I'm really looking forward to that!
Read more about Kim and the team behind Converto here.