The Problem with Confidence: The Editor-in-Chief’s Weekly Recap

Good morning dear readers,

A number shook me this week. According to a survey by Civey pollsters, only 25 percent of Germans state that they are confident about the future. A year and a half ago it was 46 percent. This leads to several questions: What kind of society is it in which only one in four people is confident about the future? How are these people reacting to the further crises that undoubtedly lie ahead? How do you decide politically? But above all: How can ideas and innovations emerge in such a society without which these crises cannot be overcome?

After a golden decade begins a period of overlapping crises. There are acute crises, the war in Ukraine, inflation. But also long-term ones, such as the climate crisis, the energy shortage or the shortage of skilled workers. It’s an unfamiliar time for Germans and we have to change.

Too many debates these days are nothing but apocalyptic competitions, as was recently shown at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt: “Mankind is heading towards the abyss,” said Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock there a few days ago. Shortly thereafter, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned in somber words: “We are on the highway to climate hell – with our foot on the accelerator”.

The situation is difficult, no question. But for psychological reasons alone, spreading doomsday scenarios is not a sustainable strategy. Because they rarely ensure positive changes and new beginnings, but lead first to a state of shock and then to resignation. No wonder that every third German in the Civey survey stated that “loss of control and powerlessness” best describes their current emotional state.

There would be so much besides sinking, which we could talk about, solutions for example, technologies that can help in the fight against many crises in this world. Scientists are making impressive progress in renewable energies, start-ups are developing artificial intelligence that helps global corporations to organize their logistics chains more efficiently, 3D printing in turn helps to save valuable raw materials, algorithms are automating jobs for which companies already have none Find more employees – and we haven’t even talked about the solar boom triggered by the current energy crisis.

The problem is just: Surveys repeatedly show that skepticism about new technologies is particularly high in Germany, unlike in the USA or China, for example. But maybe that’s no wonder in a country where many children still attend schools that still look like they did in the days of our grandparents.

What else kept us busy this week:

1: The most important research of the week came from Michael Verfürden and Roman Tyborski. They revealed how the Dax group Continental lost an almost unbelievable amount of data as a result of a cyber attack. The blackmailers demand a ransom of 50 million euros – or want to put the data up for sale. Believe me, the story isn’t over yet. And it shows that it can affect anyone, from start-ups to Dax companies.

2: The Midterms in the US have, that is certain at the end of this week, produced two celebrating losers: Donald Trump, who could not trigger the red wave. And Joe Biden, who will probably lose the majority in the House of Representatives, possibly even in the Senate. Both tried to reinterpret the situation as a success. High time to look around for possible successors for the duo of old men.

3: Researched for weeks my colleague Julian Olk on planned takeovers of Chinese companies in Germany. A few weeks ago he was the first to write about the planned takeover of the Dortmund chip factory Elmos, which has now been prohibited by Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck. This week he learned that Habeck is also prohibiting further takeovers, including the sale of the Bavarian company ERS Electronic.

4: A bitter quarrel looms between the US and Europe. Specifically, it is about the billions in subsidies for US industry. In an interview with the Handelsblatt, the French finance and economics minister, Bruno Le Maire, said: “We have to react quickly”. He calls for “a coordinated, united and strong response to our American allies.” Even a complaint before the WTO is an option.

5: Meanwhile, encouraging signals came by world-renowned economist Oliver Blanchard. He thinks inflation will subside in just a few months – as will the recession. His word carries weight, after all he warned of inflation earlier than many others.

6: feared for months Energy manager for the gas supply in Europe. But now dozens of liquid gas tankers are backing up off European coasts. The reason: They are waiting for prices to rise again. The LNG fleet at sea off Western Europe’s ports is a floating offshore gas storage facility of gigantic proportions: the LNG currently retained in the ships could supply around 2.7 million households with energy for a whole year.

7: Shortly before the start of the World Cup in Qatar, the moral waves are high: Sponsorships are questioned, public viewing is critically discussed – and companies earning money at the World Cup in Qatar hit the headlines. There are certainly good reasons to criticize the regime, for example for the degrading conditions under which guest workers have to toil there. But the current criticism borders on populism. Because Qatar has been moving ever closer to the European economies for years, investing in sports clubs, car manufacturers and luxury brands, as Qatar expert and Handelsblatt correspondent Mathias Brüggmann describes in a highly readable report. Only: Until now, hardly anyone has been interested in this ever-closer connection. If you want to stay well informed in the heated debates, read this text about the sinister friend Qatar.

8th: Henkel is not necessarily a company, which is known for breaking news. But what my colleagues Michael Scheppe and Martin Murphy uncovered here is rather unusual: Because a power struggle broke out behind the scenes between Henkel boss Carsten Knobel and his board colleague Jan-Dirk Auris, Auris now has to leave the company. This was not known until now. It was only when the Handelsblatt confronted Henkel with the research that the departure was frantically communicated.

9: And then this week I had another remarkable conversation with US psychologist Adam Grant: At the Handelsblatt’s Giga Summit innovation conference, we spent an hour talking about how people can succeed in remaining permanently curious, why successful companies often find it so difficult to start transformations – and why communication is the most important qualification for the future. Adam Grant has reached more than 25 million people with his TED Talks and his books have been translated into 35 languages. After the conversation, it should be clear to many why. Hardly anyone can explain human thinking and actions so well, has so many concrete research results in mind – and can put all of this into words so well. So if you have some time in the next few days, then this way.

I wish you a relaxing weekend
Her
Sebastian Mathes
Editor-in-Chief of the Handelsblatt

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