#11 Julian Voje – Leadership in a political environment

Today’s guest is from a completely different world from the ones we have had on the podcast so far – the world of politics. It’s Julian Voje, Head of Programs at the Munich Security Conference, who previously worked in the office of a German parliamentarian at the Bundestag and a political foundation.

I find that our conversation shows the great positive energy & humour Julian has and at the same time his deep rooted trust and the importance for him of being approachable for the people in his team. We talk about his lessons learned on giving feedback, role models he had and why he would describe his leadership style as “Papa Bear”. 

One word on today’s audio quality – it is not as clear as it usually is, bear with us and the German internet connections on the country side! 

We talk about: 

• Why Julian specifically looked for a job where he could lead a team and was open for making mistakes
• Role models he had 
• His lessons learned such as the importance of giving also positive feedback in an appropriate way for the feedback receiver in order to avoid a negative impact in the end 
• His recommendation regarding when to communicate something in front of the group or in a 1:1 situation
• How to balance and adapt your energy level as a boss with your team – and how to find that spot 
• His leadership style such as being reliable and approachable, putting trust in people and still being clear on what needs to be done  – or as one might also say “Papa Bear”
• What to do when taking over an existing team vs. choosing your own team members such as looking out for a wide diversity when selecting new team members  
• Leading and working in a political environment