Ursula Hertewich’s career seemed predetermined. A native of Saarland, she was born into a family of pharmacists. After studying pharmacy, she completed her doctorate and supported her parents and sister in the pharmacy that her great-grandfather had founded 122 years previously. She subsequently felt called to join a convent, and the pharmacist became Sister Ursula. She has been a member of the Sisters of St Catherine of Siena in the Order of St Dominic since 2006 and lives in the Arenberg convent in Koblenz. In 2013, Sister Ursula professed her perpetual vows to living as a nun.
Peter Tauber was the Secretary General of the CDU at a time when he had to defend Chancellor Angela Merkel’s controversial refugee policy. A historian with a doctorate, he had to take so much criticism that he became dangerously ill. Today, at the age of 48, he is living happily and healthily in Gelnhausen. No longer a scapegoat, he is back on his feet again, helping to shape the economy and society in various roles and taking on new and exciting challenges, not least as a keen marathon runner. But as he says of himself, “You don’t have to be a hero.”
On stage, they both spoke with Wolfram Sauer about change processes, values, friendship, leadership and trust. They drew parallels between their own biographies and the establishment of New Work in companies. They found role models in unexpected places: religious orders and the military. While the Dominicans ask people what makes them tick before assigning them tasks, in military missions it is important to trust in the strengths of the soldiers. Both are hallmarks of the new way of working.
Finally, Hertewich and Tauber emphasized the need to see difference and diversity as a positive basis for development. You have to be able to tolerate different opinions.
You can find a detailed article about the conversation in the IBA Forum Newsroom.
Photo: © IBA
