The Ford Motor Company looks back on over 120 years of history, including nearly 100 years of automobile production in Germany. Founded in 1903 by Henry Ford, the company quickly gained recognition with the Model T, the first car produced on an assembly line. Today, Ford is one of the ten largest automobile manufacturers in the world. One person who can provide us with insights into this company is our alumnus Lars Ehlers. He initially studied Information Systems at the School of Businesss & Economics and stayed on as a doctoral candidate after completing his studies. Following his doctorate in content management systems, he started his non-academic career at Ford’s Cologne plant as a business analyst in IT. Lars Ehlers has remained loyal to Ford to this day and now works as an IT manager. In this interview, we learn more about his career at Ford and his lessons in leadership.

Mr. Ehlers, what does your daily work look like? What are your responsibilities as an IT manager at Ford?

I follow a regular schedule for the week and meet individually with members of my team. This helps avoid a back-and-forth email "ping-pong," as we can discuss and resolve most issues directly. My involvement in ongoing projects varies: I’m more hands-on at the start when multiple options are on the table or core functionalities need to be defined. Once agile iterations are running smoothly, I’m less involved. Regular discussions with external service providers and meetings with dealership representatives are essential to identify improvement opportunities or explain changes driven by our company’s strategic decisions. Sometimes, specific issues require visualizations, and figuring out the “right” way to present them involves several days of data gathering and discussions with stakeholders.

You’ve been with Ford for over 20 years. What advantages do you see in staying with one company for such a long time?

I can honestly say I haven’t regretted a single day. Over these 20 years, I’ve held ten completely different roles—some as a "firefighter" for just a few months and others for several years. Each job transition brought new business problems to solve, requiring entirely different IT solutions and approaches. This keeps things exciting and ensures constant learning. Over time, I’ve built a network of colleagues across IT and business departments, who appreciate and support one another. This network provides honest feedback when you’re off track, helping you refine your approaches over time. While I still deal with IT and occasionally review team members’ source code, IT is much more than "just" coding. Previously, I might have dismissed certain aspects as "just politics," but now I understand that identifying and inspiring the right stakeholders can significantly speed up and enhance the process. It’s about understanding and acting within the political landscape.

Throughout your career, you’ve held various leadership positions. What have been the biggest developments in leadership for you? What was your greatest personal takeaway?

I firmly believe that no employee wakes up in the morning thinking, “Today, I’ll do a terrible job.” If performance issues arise, the causes are often complex. A respectful corporate culture and a team environment where leaders can also be questioned can make a big difference. Managers must realize that their actions cast a "shadow of leadership," subtly influencing employees. Without feedback or self-reflection, this influence often goes unnoticed. When managing other managers, letting go and trusting them becomes essential. Regular skip-level meetings can help stay grounded, but they only work if employees trust you, knowing you act consistently and reliably ("walk the talk," as the Americans say). I’ve sometimes let managers in my team make mistakes, even when I suspected they might fail. These situations often lead to valuable lessons or better outcomes than anticipated. Mistakes can teach fundamental lessons or make a manager more mindful of their decisions when they realize the responsibility for those decisions rests solely with them. Our former global IT leader embodied the principle of "knowledge over hierarchy." This approach empowered employees to contribute their expertise effectively, bolstering an already strong corporate culture. Combined with the “Results Pyramid” (Conners & Smith), one can see how employees’ perceptions shape their beliefs, which in turn influence their actions. Managers typically only see the outcomes of those actions. If the results are unsatisfactory, you need to address the perceptions and beliefs—and sometimes even change your own behavior.

What advice would you give today’s students about achieving a good work-life balance?

You can always push hard at work to achieve a promotion, but remember that nobody has ever said on their deathbed, “I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” On the other hand, if you focus solely on optimizing your private life, significant professional changes might catch you off guard. Work-life balance depends partly on the company’s framework. At Ford, for instance, we can block out times during the day, making it easier to juggle family responsibilities, even with a full-time job. On a personal level, you need to identify which meetings and tasks are meaningful to you and learn to prioritize. That also means saying “no” to work conflicts during important personal events. If that isn’t possible, you may be in the wrong company. Your career is a marathon, not a sprint. Modern companies won’t hinder upward mobility just because you prioritize work-life balance for a time. However, some management roles may require frequent business travel, making them incompatible with a focus on private life. Career growth isn’t only about climbing the hierarchy—it can also be fulfilling to become an expert in a specific area, which may offer both professional satisfaction and a better balance. Should your personal situation change, exploring new roles within the company can be a helpful step.

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