The resumption of the Formula 2 season means for Otmar Szafnauer the second race weekend as CEO of Van Amersfoort Racing already. As can be read in an exclusive interview with FORMULA 1 Magazine, he is already making a significant positive impact on the Dutch racing team. For example, by promoting fun and learning from the past.
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Being successful, winning, developing talents; there is no shortage of goals for a team like VAR. For Szafnauer, it also counts within the organization to achieve more than just results together, he says in the latest edition of FORMULA 1 Magazine. “You have to make sure people enjoy what they do, that they can use their qualities. I have learned that as a leader you should not ‘micromanage’. Because first of all, you simply cannot do everything yourself and secondly, you do not have expertise in everything. You have to leave that to the experts. So putting the right people in the right place.
It is a ‘feeling’ through learning lessons. Szafnauer grins, it reminds him of the past. “Because you can bet I learned it. When I was young, I interned at General Motors and then I was allowed to work at Cadillac for two years. I was about 20 years old. Only then I got the chance to start at Ford. I chose that because they paid more. But my mother also worked at Ford, in a very different role. And she said: ‘Nice and all, boy. But don’t forget that soon you will be the boss over people who are my age. Treat them well.’
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Wise words, according to Szafnauer. “Because I made sure I always listened well to the older, experienced employees. That I learned from them. I realized that they knew more about some things than I did. So I remembered well what my mother said. And it worked, that awareness.”
The full interview with Otmar Szafnauer can be read in the latest edition of FORMULA 1 Magazine! Get it now in stores or order it online below, with free delivery throughout the Netherlands.
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