In late September, the Freudenberg Preferred Partner event took place virtually for the second time. Wide-ranging information from the dealerpartners and interactive information-sharing took center-stage.
Representatives of 32 top commercial partners (Freudenberg Preferred Partners, PPP) from Europe, South Africa and Turkey were guests of Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (FST) for a day and a half in late September. Even if the Freudenberg Preferred Partner event took place virtually, the participants still gathered in a familiar setting. The Industrial Services team brought FST’s headquarters, Building 120, into the world of digital events.
The dealers proceeded from the forecourt into the foyer and then were able to “stroll” from topic to topic thanks to integrated elements of the presentation. Individual lectures were broadcast from the green screen studio in the FST Academy. The opportunities for interactive dialogue were even more developed than they were for the event’s digital debut – just as the dealer-partners had requested in their feedback at the time. In this respect, the latest event set a new benchmark for virtual events – just as its predecessor had done in 2020: The Preferred Partner event a year ago was the first-ever virtual event of its kind.
In short, it was a professional presence in a familiar environment this time as well. The event lived up to the Preferred Partners’ value to FST and the high esteem that they enjoy. Under the slogan “Better Together,” Jan Witte, Vice President, RBU Europe & Export, invited the participants to the event. “Better Together” expresses the cooperation that FST and the partners have developed over decades.
Good beer, unicorns and dinosaurs
The evening event served as a welcome and warm-up and offered two extraordinary highlights. In one guest lecture, Prof. Bastian Halecker dealt with the question of what established companies can learn from startups. He provocatively called established companies “dinosaurs” and referred to startups as “unicorns.” Halecker holds the professorship for Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship at the University of Potsdam. A recognized expert in the “deep tech” field, he was able to forecast interesting insights and outlooks and project them into future business models. A bit of background: “Deep tech” companies only use existing technologies to a limited degree. They invent new, mostly disruptive digital solutions as alternatives.
Halecker’s lecture, along with a lively discussion, was accompanied by a virtual beer tasting. Days before the event, all the participants received a package containing five exotic, international varieties of beer, which arrived by standard mail. Completely alcohol-free packages were naturally available as well. An expert from the German Beer Academy in Bamberg provided information on the beverages during the sampling and gave the participants an overview of the art of brewing.
Trust has grown
On the second day of the event, the content turned to the matter at hand, which was multifaceted and far-reaching. “We presented our Preferred Partners with our assessment of the current business and market trends, along with our strategy, organizational changes and key projects. More attention was paid to the current product and material shortages, which are also hitting dealers hard. Furthermore, the topics ranged from technical innovations such as the leakage sensor LeaCo, to reworked service offerings, all the way to new features from the digital business development area, such as eNext,” Witte said. With the help of special lectures, the event gave selected FST Lead Centers a platform to acquaint the commercial partners with their current focuses.
There was an open discussion in a large group about the current, largely pandemic-related uncertainties and the related challenges for on-time delivery and availability. It turned out that, in these times of crisis, the trust that has grown over decades in the partnerships proved especially valuable. “Our Preferred Partners are an almost familial group with whom we cultivate close connections and share exclusive information. Our annual gathering also gives us an image of the market to integrate into our decision-making,” said José Caro, Vice President, Global Distribution.
The response to the event showed that FST’s commercial partners appreciated the approach. The comment “excellent event, very informative” succinctly sums up the feedback. Another participant praised the event’s “perfect organization” and stressed the “quality of the speakers and FST’s wide-ranging expertise,” especially during the Lead Center sessions and based on the services that were presented.
