Dusseldorf Clara Christina Streit is one of the most powerful women on Germany’s supervisory boards. In the current Handelsblatt ranking, the 53-year-old ranks ninth. The former McKinsey senior partner controls two Dax companies, Deutsche Börse and the Vonovia housing group. “As a member of the supervisory board, I want to shape, not manage,” says Streit in an interview with the Handelsblatt about her work.
She is a member of important committees at both companies. “Many major decisions about mergers, takeovers, transformation processes, occupations are prepared here,” says Streit about her work there. “The dough is still soft, it is being kneaded in the committees.”
In the transformation of the German economy in terms of digitization, sustainability, diversity and crisis resilience, she believes that the supervisors have a duty – and are on the right track. “The supervisory and administrative boards have become more active,” says Streit. “The Anglo-Saxon model of the board is in style and actually on the rise.” She does not see the need for further laws, reforms or quotas for good corporate governance.
In the interview, she also reveals the secret of her greatly increased influence. It is their involvement in the secret power circles of the supervisory boards, the committees, and it is their networks.
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Read the full interview here:
Ms. Streit, according to the Handelsblatt ranking, you are the top climber among the Dax inspectors. They are now among the ten most influential supervisory boards in Germany, in line with former Dax CEOs such as Nikolaus von Bomhard, Michael Diekmann and Joe Kaeser. Does that surprise you?
Yes, but I’m happy. After all, I very consciously chose this profession as a professional supervisory board member ten years ago. It’s my second career, if you will. And during this time I have already worked for 13 chairmen or supervisory board chairmen in eight different committees in six countries. It is precisely this diversity that is very enriching.
In what way? How do you develop as a member of the supervisory board?
There are no recurring patterns or templates. After all, as a member of the supervisory board, you are particularly in demand, for example in extreme situations: hostile takeovers, the CEO goes to the competitor, mergers, takeovers, pandemics, war. There is a kind of crisis or exceptional competence, and this increases with committee experience.
Vita Clara Christina dispute
When you first worked for the Swiss investment company Vontobel, you were only 42 years old and still a senior partner at McKinsey. They changed sides at an age when top consultants actually aspire to operational activities. What attracted you to the work on the supervisory board?
I work with and for companies on strategic issues that are particularly important in terms of content. And I do that together with the company’s top decision-makers. I did that for over 20 years as a McKinsey consultant, and I’ve been doing that for over ten years as a board member. So I just got closer to the companies and more responsible.
Personnel consultants now also expect operational experience, ideally at board level, from new supervisory board members. As an ex-consultant, you lack this experience, don’t you?
McKinsey is now also a very large, global organization. I also worked internally there. For example, I was co-head of the global election committee for the new partners and was an advisor in charge of financial institutions and funding issues. Finances and people, these are the topics that still fascinate me to this day.
“Only do as much as you have reserves for crises”
Woman with financing expertise, also with German and US citizenship – you should hardly be able to save yourself from inquiries right now.
When I became a member of the supervisory board, I – woman, under 50 years old, full-time inspector – was still an exotic person. Fortunately, that has now changed. And, yes, there are many requests. But I recently gave up a mandate – that with the largest Dutch insurance group, NN.
Why did you give up this mandate?
I worked on this supervisory board and on the board of a predecessor company for a total of almost ten years. And the succession was excellently organized. It is good governance to only do so much that you have reserves for crises.
The so-called overboarding, i.e. when a supervisory board has too many mandates, is now frowned upon.
Yes, exactly, although I have to say that I still had sufficient capacity even with five mandates. I have an attendance rate of almost 100 percent for all my mandates. I was and am also an active investor. For example, I was involved in the IPO of digital entertainment platform Azerion last year.
At Deutsche Börse you are on the Presidential and Nomination Committees, and at Vonovia you also head the Finance Committee. How important is the work in these committees?
Extreme important. I have never been on a committee on any board of directors. The work in it is much more substantive and concentrated than in the large body. Many major decisions about mergers, takeovers, transformation processes, occupations are prepared here. The dough is still soft, it’s being kneaded in the committees, if I may say so myself. As a member of the supervisory board, I want to shape, not manage.
Are you aspiring to chair a supervisory board?
One cannot aspire to such an office. It is brought to you. As the saying goes: Happiness is when you are ready and the opportunity arises.
And are you ready?
I’ve been very happy so far with the many different insights I’ve been able to gain. I’ve learned a lot. And maybe yes, if it would fit, why not?
Anglo-Saxon model on the rise
How has the work of the supervisory board changed in recent years?
The supervisory and administrative boards have become more active. The supervisory board helps the executive board and challenges it. The discussion culture is much more involved. This means that we on the supervisory board no longer primarily monitor, we advise and give impetus. The Anglo-Saxon model style with more active non-executive directors is on the rise. In addition, every well-managed and diverse supervisory board strives to work through the mandatory exercises, the regulatory issues so quickly and professionally that there is time and space for the key future issues, the strategy.
In our ranking, you stand out in particular because of your network power. How did you get your mandate?
Through professional processes, as befits good governance. There is practically no occupation without the support of a personnel consultant.
Which networks do you maintain? McKinsey Alumni, Alma Mater St. Gallen, LinkedIn?
Yes, exactly that. I even have professional friends from my school days in Bielefeld.
Networks are just one thing. How do you get influence?
You need relevance and trust to make a difference. Relevance comes from expertise. No matter how relevant they may be, if they are not trusted, they will make no difference. You build trust by being there, appearing credible and putting the good of the company above everything else. This is more of an art than a science. Another quality of a good supervisory board is certainly not wanting to shine. The first row belongs to the board of directors. The supervisory board works and remains in the background.
Ms. Streit, thank you very much for the interview.
More: A well-known name and many newcomers: These are Germany’s most powerful supervisory boards