As you may have read in the news, the German automotive industry is under unprecedented pressure. It is the result of a mix of internal factors, changing geopolitics, new technologies, new competitors and last but not least a dysfunctional German government. Volkswagen Group, the company I have been associated with for decades, has been hit exceptionally hard. It is not the first crisis we see in the company, …
Since returning to Toronto, I have experienced some highlights. For instance, we celebrated a birthday dinner at the 360 Degree Restaurant in the CN Tower. We were advised to go early to enjoy the view starting in daylight, and it was a fantastic recommendation. The most impressive sight was the view of Billy Bishop Airport from the top. This regional airport serves routes to Canadian destinations as well as cities like Boston and New York …
Ten years ago, as accompanying programme to my photo exhibition in Beijing in 2014, I gave a talk called “Cities, countrysides and why all heavens are gardens”. I love gardens. not so much the orderly geometric type, but those growing out of a wilderness. And I took the chance to stop over in my Secret Garden for three days. It was humid summer and all the greens are lush and grew quite a bit. Happy to see that after a lot of previous planting did not survive the drought of summer 2023 …
Luckily Chinese Airlines continue flying over Russia, and so I was able to take the short cut from Toronto over the North Pole to Hong Kong. It is interesting watching the flight map, diving into Asia from that perspective. Still the 12 hour time difference, made me a little trouble this time. Then I also caught a fever and still had to flag pole over Macao due to a delayed visa process ...
The original Google search algorithm, PageRank, assigned a weight to websites to determine their importance. The more frequently a page was viewed, the more likely it was to appear in a Google search. Over time, this method has evolved into a more complex system, likely influenced by financial incentives and amplified by techniques ranging from search engine optimization to the amplification of semantic clusters through clickbait. Despite these changes, the algorithm worked well for me until I moved to North America ...
In 1979/’80 I was thrown out of Catholic religious studies in my high school for the offense of marking major oil and gas fields in the back part of the school bible, where there were maps of the holy land. Soon kids joined me in the school library during these hours. Their offence was, that they had been displaced by terror from a cradle of civilization into a run down 5th tier city in Germany called Neuwied ...
After some time packed with logistics in Europe, I am resurfacing in Toronto. Nothing against Europe. I really cherish the cultural richness and complexity, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. But no place there is as relaxed and friendly as Canada. It appears to be hard wired, somehow. Recently, I was downtown Toronto, waiting for the streetcar (tramway) at Church station …
In 2021 I decided to spend more time in the Netherlands and took a part time teaching position at Tilburg University. Immediately the question of housing came up. Tilburg in itself is a small university town and it is fair to say it has a housing crisis, which I did not want to add to. So when thinking through options, I started to look for boats. And this is how a three year semi-holiday in the Netherlands started …
The Charles River (Quinobequin) separates Boston from Cambridge Massachusetts and, given the number and quality of Universities on its banks, is dubbed “the most educated river”. There are Harvard, MIT, Boston University and many more. I have been to Boston before to visit the office of my former employer, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) …
Toronto offers once a year the opportunity to enter a large number of sites and buildings in Doors Open Toronto. This time it was the weekend of May 25th-26th. The sheer number of buildings listed is overwhelming. But there was one I had in focus, because I caught myself already a few times pressing my nose to the windows …
We assembled a group of MBA students from the University of Hong Kong in Helsinki, which became our starting point for a study trip in the Finland and Estonia. Again this was a great group: curious, disciplined and open minded …
Tomorrow I am heading to Helsinki through Riga and then Estonia. The original plan was also passing through St. Petersburg. But I am accompanied by a variety of Nationalities, and so it maybe difficult to cross the border through Nara. We cut the trip short of this beautiful city this time …
After a stop over Stuttgart, I continued to Switzerland for the launch of the Elite Quality Index 2024 launch (EQx 2024) at St. Gallen University. We contributed this year two indicators on Housing Affordability and the Construction Supply Gap …
On December 2nd and 3rd 1989 Michael Gorbatchev and George H.W. Bush met on the Soviet ship TS Maksim Gorkiy south of Malta, mooring in the Bay of Marsaxlokk. The sea was choppy, which brought the meeting the name “Seasickness Summit”. It is often described as one of the most important summits since the Yalta Conference in 1945, …
Last week, I had the chance to present the industrial and economic facets of Germany to MBA students from The University of Hong Kong. Our journey began in Berlin, then proceeded to Wolfsburg, Dortmund, Duisburg, Hannover, and concluded back in Berlin. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to our hosts …
Moving to Canada on relatively short notice made me lift my boat out of the water in the Netherlands. This will allow me to do some maintenance work, which is more difficult in the water. Moving the vessel to New Orleans and going up the Mississippi may be an option. So far, this is only an idea…
Imagine you are in your twenties, have a natural science or engineering PhD, and speak 4 to 6 languages. You have won prizes and awards, read over 2000 books, have profound knowledge, and enjoy literature, visual arts, history, and music, perhaps even playing a few instruments. You are not socially awkward, …
Life is easy in Canada. Sure, moving to a new place across an ocean has it’s challenges. But Toronto is a good place to settle. It’s a vast land, and there is not much infrastructure. So one of the next tasks will be to find a good 4x4. But the main challenge lies not in Canada, but still back in Europe. There is a boat to store and potentially transport over to the new world …
It’s finally getting chilly in Toronto, and I decided to get shoes for my dog. Not so much because of the cold but more because of the defrosting agents on the paths. This morning, while walking along the Northern side of Lake Ontario, I heard some comments on the Index of Economic Freedom provided annually by the Heritage Foundation (click here) …
I started my birthday on an Air Canada flight, up in the air over the Atlantic, South of Greenland. In the afternoon, I drove to visit my parents in Westerwald and crossed farmers’ protests on the way. This was one of the most friendly and well-organized protests I have ever seen, …
Oh, what a year this has been! Now it’s ending, and I wish everyone a peaceful Christmas time, happy holidays, and all the best for 2024. It will be a year to make it or break it. What worries me, with my parents at very old age, is the loss of this generation of witnesses to war and famine and how fragile societies are …
It has been a few days now, since I arrived in Canada. Eddie had to stay in his transport box for 14 hours but took it with ease, in both airports and then in the pressurized luggage space. On advice of my vet, I did not sedate him. She told me, that it may happen that dogs even panic more when they feel the non-familiar impact of medications …
Last night, I had the pleasure of joining the vernissage of the solo exhibition of Rosette Bonello at Rudy Buhler’s Art Gallery in Marsaskala. I walked along the coast from Kalkara, at the end of a stormy day, which expanded into the night. It is always impressive to see how the rock has been able to withstand the waves for ages. Rudy was a Swiss banker …
I am always amazed by Turkey. The economic fundamentals of the country should be pretty strong. This is why I am puzzled by the economic turmoil it has been in for decades. Sure, there are some political decisions which are mind-boggling, like the interest rate policies of the Turkish Central Bank…
My time in Hong Kong was very condensed this year. My apologies to the friends I could not meet this time. Thanks also to the great students from the MBA programme of Hong Kong University and the GBA stream coming in from Shenzhen to participate in a 5-day intensive course on Turn Around Management and Corporate Restructuring …
This week we kicked off the new round of the Tilburg University Master of International Management. I have been teaching a course on Management Consulting in this program for a couple of years. Today, we had the first lecture, and from tomorrow on, it will be project work …
I embarked a train trip from Germany to Switzerland and unfortunately there was no Swiss train matching my schedule. So, there was no other choice than using a connection supplied and operated by the German Railway Company, called Deutsche Bahn. I really like travelling by train, and I did so in many parts of the World. But it’s always important to know what to expect …
On my way back up the Maas, I stopped over at the Linne jetty at the end of a dead river arm. The small town has a shop where I needed to get some supplies. Also, there were good reviews on “google maps”. But it turned out to be a “hippie jetty” …
A “Passantenhaven” is the Dutch name for marinas which allow guest boats for a limited of time to stay. On the way to Roermond, I had difficulties finding such. For the first attempt, I followed a recommendation to turn right straight downstream the “big bridge” …
Today I received 5 emails containing a “deadline”. Looks like I am happy, if I make it alive into the new year then. I am not very picky with my language, and sometimes even guess the pronoun wrong. My apologies. But setting somebody a deadline, sounds a little rough even to me. Usually I set delivery or submission dates, not deadlines. Here is why: In the absence of barbed wire during the US civil war, POWs were restricted to leave jail by just drawing a line in the sand …