It was 5 May 2023 and I was able to spend a day with Ralf Rangnick in Cologne. I had booked him for the e-Commerce Day and the event took place in the RheinEnergie Stadium, so it was the perfect setting for a talk by Ralf Rangnick.
Ralf Rangnick is the coach of the Austrian national football team. The German football coach certainly needs no introduction.
I picked him up at the hotel and we took a leisurely drive to the stadium. During this time, as well as afterwards in the backstage area before the lecture, we had enough time to talk about football in general, the situation of the German national team (when Hansi Flick was still coach) and his team’s qualifying matches. Austria wanted to go to Germany for Euro 2024 with all their might and ultimately managed to qualify without any problems.
Ralf Rangnick then gave a sensational speech on the topic of “10 principles of effective leadership and motivation in football” and how these points can also be transferred to the daily business environment. Rangnick received a standing ovation for his speech and was available for selfies with the participants afterwards.
Ralf Rangnick and I had arranged to meet for breakfast at his favourite café in Leipzig years ago. Back then, he was still the coach of RB Leipzig. For him, clear communication, commitment and trust are important attributes of working together. So I’m all the more pleased that we’ve been working together for some time now. And despite all his successes, he has remained human, down-to-earth, approachable, always friendly and very motivating.
I wish Ralf Rangnick all the best for the upcoming games at Euro 2024 – and beyond – and look forward to seeing him again next time we meet for breakfast, in a taxi or at a lecture.