From Würzburg to the World

What do graduates of Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) do for a living? In order to introduce students to different perspectives, Michaela Thiel, Managing Director of the central alumni network, interviewed selected alumni. This time, Dr Cristian Seynstahl answered her questions.

Christian, how would you describe your job to a layperson? I am the head of a great team that deals with the organisation of the economic and structural framework conditions and the many challenges faced by companies - from start-up to handover. We represent the interests of the commercial sector vis-à-vis politicians, administrations and the general public, from the organisation of public transport, infrastructure expansion and urban development to state and regional planning and municipal planning issues. As a representative of public interests, we take a stand on regional and local planning processes, such as the designation of commercial areas, road construction, the establishment of supermarkets or the expansion of renewable energies. To this end, we liaise closely with the members and volunteers of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce. We also provide advice on the topics of business start-ups, company formation, financing and funding, location searches, securing skilled labour, corporate social responsibility, coaching services and company succession for our 71,000 or so member companies in Mainfranken. We also carry out regional analyses and surveys, for example three times a year on the economic situation in the chamber district, and publish these in publications or in our Digital Business Atlas Mainfranken.

What do you particularly like about your work, what do you see as the biggest challenge? I particularly enjoy the variety of topics and, of course, working in a team. My job is extremely varied in terms of content and never really boring. There are also the organisational tasks in the areas of personnel management, project planning and the strategic development of my department. There's always a lot to do, but it's also a lot of fun. And I have great colleagues, both personally and professionally, who do a very good job every day. I also get to travel around the region a lot and meet committed colleagues there too. It's true that there are often very tough challenges, but we stay on the ball and get a lot of positive feedback for our work. The biggest challenges are the limited resources - even my day only has 24 hours. Sometimes it's a balancing act to get everything under one roof. But all in all, I can't complain and the positives clearly outweigh the negatives!

You have published a book - can you briefly describe the content? Dr Sascha Genders, the new Managing Director of our Chamber of Industry and Commerce, and I have published the book "CSR und Hidden Champions. With corporate responsibility to world market leader" published by Springer-Verlag. We focussed on the question of what German hidden champions, i.e. lesser-known global market leaders, are already achieving in terms of sustainability and entrepreneurship. In addition to thematically wide-ranging specialist articles, the book also contains a number of practical reports from companies that provide an insight into their CSR strategy and projects.

What is your favourite study memory? I can't answer that exactly. Overall, I really enjoyed my time at university. Not only did I have the opportunity to focus on subjects that I really enjoyed, but student life was also great. I made a lot of friends that I still keep in touch with, had enough time for my hobbies alongside my studies and various jobs, and yes, there was plenty of partying too. I also met my wife during my studies, which are of course particularly fond memories. I was very proud when I was able to hold my degree in my hands, but also a little wistful. After all, I've stayed in Würzburg and Mainfranken.

Thank you very much for the interview.

Are you not yet a member of the university's alumni network? Then you are cordially invited to register at the network's website! There you can also find the previously published interviews with JMU alumni and alumnae.