Great Orators and their Stories – #2 Hans-Jörg Bullinger

Today, in my “Hommage to great orators” I bow before Dr. Hans-Jörg Bullinger.

Hans-Jörg Bullinger is from Baden-Württemberg and was born in Stuttgart. I have had the pleasure of listening to his talks several times. A few years ago, InterFace had organised a beautiful day out for all employees to the lake Ammersee, including ferry trip and beer garden. Hans-Jörg Bullinger’s talk before dinner was the highlight of the day.

The last time I heard him was at the OCÉ in Poing, when Ernst Spaett (long-time boss of the sector high-power pressure systems at Siemens AG, later OCÉ) was sent into retirement. Ernst Spaett is now my mentor and dear friend.

Hans-Jörg Bullinger is the embodiment of “middle-class way of thinking” combined with “common sense”. What he says and advises is very simple, logical and always gives confidence. His criticism is constructive and often he also offers a simple solution to a problem.

His story about “the machine that did not look very nice” is one I particularly remember. Even if I am sure that I cannot really do justice to how Hans-Jörg Bullinger himself would have told it (the representation of the pleasant southern German sound of the speech, along with a grain of Swabian is not easy for me), I will now relate it.

In this story, Hans-Jörg Bullinger tells about his visit to a middle-class enterprise for which times are not easy at the moment, even though it offers technically excellent products. The owner of the machine production firm shows him the new machine and proudly presents the improvements of the new model: reduced running energy, simplified control, extended intervals between maintenances, fewer rejects, and much more. The machine itself looks like a hideous monster. Dr. Bullinger asks if it might not be beautified by a few metal sheets or a nice spraying. Upon which the ignorant owner replies that the machine would not be any more efficient if that were done. So much the more is he surprised to hear the answer by Professor Bullinger: “But maybe it would sell better!”.

I like this story because it is an example for sectional blindness. “Honourable engineers”, in particular, want to deliver a job well done, and that is absolutely adorable. But once in a while they forget that the bride should also be hung with ornaments. Because the eye makes the appetite, not only when you dine.

RMD

(tranlated by Evelyn Gemkow)

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