In the first edition of our podcast, the President, Professor Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan, is here in person in the glass studio at Guericke FM, where the podcasts are recorded, to tell us how the idea of a podcast for internal communication came about and what he aims to achieve with the new format. He also explains his hope that employees’ problems and challenges can be expressed, and that decisions and changes made by the management can be openly communicated.

Our guest today

Who better to welcome as our guest in the first edition of a podcast about the working environment at the University of Magdeburg than the President himself? Originally from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, since 2012 Professor Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan has led the university and is also President of the State Rectors’ Conference of Saxony-Anhalt.

*the audio file is only available in German

The Podcast to Read

Intro voiceover: In die Uni reingehört. Der Podcast zur Arbeitswelt an der OVGU.

Dirk Alstein: Welcome to the very first episode of this podcast, which will be broadcast regularly. All of the subjects that we cover here will be concerned with the working environment at the university. My name is Dirk Alstein, and I work here at the University of Magdeburg in the Department of Media, Communication and Marketing. And I have a guest with me, as will be the case with each of the future episodes. Of course [laughing] it won’t always be the same guest, but there will always be a guest - today’s is the President of our university, who came up with the idea of this podcast. A very warm welcome, Professor Strackeljan!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Hello Mr Alstein.

Dirk Alstein: Our topic today is “Why have a podcast for internal communication?” We already have a wide range of communication channels here at the university, including the newsletter, a print magazine, the uni:report, and a Facebook page. So, why this podcast right now?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: We felt that we could make some improvements in terms of our internal communication. We will only know if the podcast is the right tool if we give it a try. And that is why we wanted to attempt it. But there are just a few signs - pieced together, in part, from individual impressions to make an overall picture - I have the impression that we have reached a point, here at the university, where we can make improvements when it comes to communication, to coming together, putting across what is really important to us. And we won’t be able to do this just from reading a newsletter. It is important to let people know what is going on. And that is why I think that a format like this, where we can start from a completely different level - and discuss different topics not necessarily at quarterly intervals, but more frequently too - is really appealing.

Dirk Alstein: Internal communication isn’t, after all, purely a matter of the flow of information - if I have understood you correctly - but instead can also help create a feeling of togetherness at a university; a corporate culture, if I can call it that. What is your sense of this currently at the university?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: In recent months, as part of our psychological risk analysis - the GEPSY project - we have carried out some surveys. You have probably taken part yourself. I had been taking part in an evaluation and was personally criticized a little by the management team at the university too - who are of course relatively close to it or communicate with me - that they had the impression that things could be more engaging, and that we needed clearer forms of communication. You don’t always feel as if you are fully included. So this certainly offers potential. I don’t necessarily have to go directly to the caretakers, drivers or gardeners. But I believe that everyone can improve on something, and so it is important to ask the question: where are we?

We are at the point where we have to realize that at this university - as far as the dynamics are concerned and competition for students vis à vis Leipzig, Berlin and Braunschweig - things have changed. If we look back 15 years, certain things were just easier and we could say that in the coming years things would develop positively. We have to understand that this has changed and we have to make people feel included. If we do not commit to heading in a certain direction, then as an institution we will probably find that we are more likely to have a problem or have more problems than we need. So there is plenty of scope for improvement. We should at least actually address the things that we can manage with moderate financial means.

Dirk Alstein: As you have just mentioned, you have now been here at the university for 15 years, since 2004. Was it easier in the past to take the staff along with you? Is it more difficult today, or simply different?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Well, I think that the majority of staff still have great events and festivals and parties in mind, where they say, “That was amazing, do we actually have them anymore?” I can remember a summer fair where we had a kind of Olympic Games in front of the refectory on the square - it must have been around 2013. That was absolutely amazing! Great atmosphere, nice chats. You do need to arrange it so that there's a chance for people to get talking by the bar. We had our summer fair a few months ago. There was a great atmosphere, the weather played its part too. But there could have been more enthusiasm for it; and one asks oneself: “Is it a general impression that is true now for the university as a whole, or is it just somehow a selective perception?” You can never say exactly, but we must just be vigilant and draw a few conclusions from it, that we perhaps need other ways of coming together in conversation.

And I think this kind of podcast can get people talking with one another and saying, “Huh! I don’t agree with that at all!” or “I think that’s great!” And then you are approached on campus and told: “I heard that the other day; you’re just on the wrong track.” - not me just now, but you’re welcome! [Alstein laughs] But for those who sit here next; it could be a format that actually achieves something.

The things that we are using now for communication, of course they didn’t exist 15 years ago. So it is not at all surprising that we have a different kind of communication, internally too. Our private lives and here at the university are no longer fully separate. The university is also shaped by this to a certain extent and perhaps we have some catching up to do.

Dirk Alstein: As is probably the case with many companies in Germany. I don’t think it is only happening at the university. Do you listen to podcasts in your free time too? Do you even have the time?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Yes, of course, I do have some free time, or at a pinch: in this job there is no clear distinction between my private and professional life. Things tend to overlap. If an evening event starts at 7 pm and there is the chance to go home for an hour in between times, then there is the possibility of listening to a podcast every now and again. I must confess I listen to them in the office too. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I wouldn’t mind if this podcast were listened to in the office either!

And at home I do sometimes latch on to what the kids are listening to, of course. They are quite different formats, but I notice that it is popular, it resonates, and it also provokes debate relatively quickly between them, which I think is good. And you can just press pause and thrash things out there and then. And so you become part of a discussion, even if, of course, at times you are just listening passively. And that is what I am hoping for here, that we achieve something like that. And perhaps it could lead to discussions in the office. Where people say, “what are they talking about? It’s not like that at all!” or “They are right. And we should tell them.” And then perhaps the other formats could become more interactive, like the newsletter, where we are always looking for topics.

Internal communication, when pro-actively pursued, is simply far more than just presenting facts and information.

Dirk Alstein: Actually that was more or less going to be my next question: whether we can listen to this podcast during our working day. Actually it is quite clear, since it is not just listening for fun. It is, after all, about the working environment here at the university. Hopefully, there will be many more episodes. Which topics would you like to hear discussed?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: So the range of topics should achieve the aim of further strengthening the feeling of togetherness and giving a voice to the many people who work here at the university every day, and get across that we are all part of this university, that we keep this organism alive and that we all have to work together to help it to grow. So that the students this October, next April and then in 2020 too can progress. These are the challenges! Alongside the students from Saxony-Anhalt, those from Lower Saxony are the biggest group that we have. And next year they will have twice as many students as they usually do completing their Abitur.

We will have to pool all of our strengths to deal with this situation and we will manage it best if we actually have an idea: we all want to march in this direction! This will affect both teaching and research. The university must not disintegrate into parts where everyone has a degree of freedom and there is no timekeeping, but instead where everyone is free to generate good ideas under the shower or somewhere on the Baltic coast while the rest have to slave away here in 30º temperatures [Alstein laughs]. Even if this is the case, we have to get the idea across that a university lives on these things and this is what it is all about.

And I believe one thing or another can also still be put across; I see good opportunities; we just have to improve our communication.

Dirk Alstein: So did you mention a specific topic then, or not? Did I miss it?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Er, yes [Alstein and Strackeljan laugh] we have done a lot of chatting!

Dirk Alstein: [laughing] Pardon me!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Yes but, I did hint at it a bit, didn't I? For example, the timekeeping.

Dirk Alstein: That’s right!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: It is one of those subjects that are certainly somewhat controversial at the university, with the academic and non-academic staff. Neither will work without the other. But I would prefer it if the debate were not conducted in such a way as if there were somehow two camps. At the moment I do not have the impression that it is a major issue. But timekeeping is certainly one.

Digitization concerns me too; we could be more advanced in this regard. To get back to the part about “where can I listen to it?” After all, we have a multitude of tools that make us much faster. I do not believe that we are in a position to actually only work eight hours at this pace that is dictated to us - with the answering of mails and so on. We really have become much quicker, which means that we can achieve considerably more in eight hours, or even in seven, and this gives us new leeway. Which we can make use of. And this might mean creative phases, during which we are able to exchange ideas. And here a podcast like this can absolutely motivate us to sit down with a couple of people and ask: “So, what do we actually think about this?” After all, that is what university is all about. People being able to organize their own work and not always being subjected to instructions of some kind from above. After all, there is no managing committee that specifies how everything must be done. And essentially we do not have the kind of organizational structure that you see at VW, for example, with divisions, main departments and sub-departments - we are set up quite differently.

Dirk Alstein: Since we have just talked about the topics that you perhaps can think of, perhaps we should make the most of the opportunity to appeal to the listeners now too: please feel free to make lots of suggestions about what we could cover in the near future. Just send us an email to speak to us directly! We look forward to hearing from you! Or if there are general questions or suggestions, we will be pleased to take them on board, because this is not a one-sided thing. In the best-case scenario - you alluded to it earlier - it should become a dialog, even if we are shouted at for being on the wrong track as we walk around campus.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: I would certainly support this appeal and make the most of the opportunity of sitting in front of the microphone today. It will only succeed if we really use it to seize on the topics, immerse ourselves in the differing areas of activity in this university; in other words somebody working in the workshop is just as important and has as many things that they want to get across, as a scientist conducting research here. And the range of topics should reflect this. As far as the scientists are concerned, I can imagine that it is likely that they will be keen to do it. I am looking forward to finding out what the janitors have to say.

Dirk Alstein: I would be interested to hear that!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Me too! And that is why I really hope that they do it. For this reason, the answer to the question that you asked me earlier, “what will the topics be?”, is that it depends a great deal on the people - what is on their mind when they are working for us here.

Dirk Alstein: Exactly. And understanding or knowledge of the things that others do, ultimately leads - I am sure there is a great English expression for it that just isn’t coming to mind at the moment - and basically strengthens the whole team, that feeling of all being in it together, the corporate culture. That is another reason why we are trying this.

We are almost at the end already. Professor Strackeljan, to finish up with, I just have three quick questions that we have already touched upon thematically. Can I ask you to answer them briefly, where possible in one sentence. The first question is, “What constitutes good internal communication for you?”

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Communication that uses different routes and communication channels in such a way that the different target groups - the more heterogeneous, the more varied the formats must be - are also actually reached, and that we listen to one another.

Dirk Alstein: Thank you! Question 2: Things that you would like to see from the employees in this respect.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: I have already mentioned listening. Feedback! That is really important. I think that is lacking to a certain extent. Giving up, if you like, if people say, “It has always been this way,” then we will never change. This must not happen! Question things every day, challenge the leaders right to the top and say, “No, I have a different idea.” It might not necessarily be right. On average, both sides will not always be right. That’s clear. But there will be a discussion, and that is the important point. That as part of this exchange of ideas we develop a culture where people trust themselves and are also allowed to make mistakes - and here we certainly have room for improvement.

That wasn’t one sentence [Alstein laughs] - but it is so important, that I wanted to mention it again here. Because it is essential to talk and exchange ideas, as only then will we find out what is going on. After all, we want to develop momentum, and that means: sometimes we have to step outside of our comfort zone, and onto terrain with which we are not familiar. That is what is needed, otherwise we will have problems. And every single one of us ought to do it. The President does not sail the good ship university forwards all by himself, it takes a lot of us. But if we, so to speak, forbid this, and say: “We don’t need your input here,” then it becomes relatively easy to take one’s hands off the tiller and find that the rudder is no longer being operated by anyone. It might not be noticeable, somehow the ship is only going, I don't know, half a percent slower overall, but that is something that cannot be allowed.

Dirk Alstein: That was another nice short sentence [Strackeljan laughs] - but I think what you said was great!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: [laughing] Sorry!

Dirk Alstein: No, no! You said some good things. Feedback culture, tolerating mistakes and so on. I believe that - I don't suppose that the podcast can achieve it all - these are key things that should be considered so that we - irrespective of whether our jobs are secure or not - can simply feel at ease and inspired to drive the university forwards.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: Yes, because that is an important point: Today it really is not about the security of the workforce or jobs, but instead whether we can retain people. And recruit them. That is a key point. And there is simply more competition. That, too, is how we differ now from the situation 15 years ago. We simply have a situation where we have other competitors and we have to do more. Perhaps it will help, to make people feel included and involved in such a way that they no longer say, “I’m off!” if they are offered a few euros more. That is very important.

Dirk Alstein: OK, 3rd question, 3rd one sentence reply: How do you see the interaction and cooperation here at the university in 5 years’ time?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: I’m really going to try and say it in one sentence. [Alstein laughs]

Dirk Alstein: [laughing] Don't be so strict, go for it!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Strackeljan: That probably there will again be new things; we probably wouldn’t have been talking about a podcast five years ago. Perhaps there will be something else new then - let’s hope that we remain open to them, make use of these things and that we are also discerning. Perhaps this podcast will not exist anymore. That wouldn’t be such a bad thing either. Then perhaps it will have achieved something for a time. Or we will have learned from it and said, “that wasn’t the right format after all, we’ll do something else.” That is what I hope.

Dirk Alstein: Professor Strackeljan, thank you for our chat. It was great; thank you very much! And thank you, too, to all of our listeners. And let me say it again: if you have any questions, suggestions or above all ideas for topics for discussion, then feel free to contact us directly or simply send us an email to Until the next podcast, thank you. Bye!

Intro voiceover: In die Uni reingehört. Der Podcast zur Arbeitswelt an der OVGU.