Keynote Neuland Kongress 2020 | CEO Hannes Ametsreiter

I remember very well last year, the same congress. Many things have changed, and these many changes are shaping us greatly right now. Some things have changed for the better, some for the worse.

The economy has partly collapsed, partly weakened significantly. Freedoms have developed in entirely new ways, along with a flexibility that will hopefully remain. We've seen people helping each other.

We've also seen that some things divide us — a society that has become divided and has started a very polarizing discussion. I'd like to talk today about what this suddenly erupted pandemic has done — has the pandemic shaped society? What have we experienced? How have we felt it? I think it's an exciting topic, and I'll get to that now.

When corona struck, what were our first thoughts at Vodafone? First and foremost, how do we keep the networks running? What's coming our way? How do we get through this crisis? And we were suddenly struck by the realization that we are the backbone — the digital backbone — for society, for social life, but of course also for the economy.

We saw that some networks abroad reached their breaking points, that they collapsed. And so our first thought was naturally about our employees and then immediately about the networks — finding an approach that offers the highest possible security, that shows responsibility, both internally and externally.

Back then we had daily meetings where we tracked the status of network performance. We managed that brilliantly — the networks held strong. It was also the hour that struck for us, the hour of network operators, the hour of networks, simply to ensure that people could work from home.

It was a field test we would never have conducted otherwise, because we would never have dared. Sending all call center agents home — we would never have done that under normal circumstances. So it was a real stress test, one that I think we can say we passed brilliantly — and all of Germany passed it. Everyone pulled together.

It was a good experience to see how capable Germany is, to see how strong the networks can be, despite all the complaints that existed before as well. And so I believe that was ultimately a good, strengthening experience — it brings people together and gives you something to build on, which we also want to build on.

Can we put a checkmark on this and say this is now the new normal and everything went back to normal? No, we can't. We've learned that many things have changed. This pandemic has shaped society — also the way people work. Everyone was in home office. In our company, we sent 96 percent of all employees home to work remotely.

For us it was easy because we'd been doing this for eight years already — that 50 percent of the time could also be spent in home office. Everyone has a notebook, so the transition was very quick for us and not difficult at all. Many others experienced a much bigger leap.

These huge changes in homeschooling, the changes in the education system, the changes in other areas like production — that was challenging. It was truly something where people had to learn: how does this work now? What do we learn from this? We learn that this crisis is more than just Netflix, disinfectant spray, and frequent hand washing.

It is a pandemic — one that deeply impacts social life, work, and challenges us. It challenges us in how we deal with freedoms and flexibility. It challenges us as we suddenly have new constraints we must accept in order to have more security. So it's an exciting experience — not always pleasant, but sometimes also a liberating one.

Never before have we probably experienced so much solidarity, so much help, so much humanity. And yet we've also witnessed alarming tendencies — this concentration of intense social developments. That presents an interesting situation that we must also grapple with — one that shows possibilities but simultaneously defines risks. An exciting time.

We must also be aware that there are, of course, downsides. Machines cannot bring people closer. A campfire will never be replaced by a screen, and hugging a screen isn't much fun and doesn't feel good either.

We've also seen that some developments have occurred — that domestic violence has suddenly increased, that there's aggression, that alcohol and cigarette consumption has risen. We've seen there are tensions.

We've also seen great humanity. We learn from this that the future must be shaped. We learn that a future of work and life needs greater flexibility, but absolutely also needs freedom — the individual ability to make choices. If we follow that, if we build it in, then we have the chance to learn from this crisis and develop the strength to change things positively. That's what I hope for.

What has corona done to society? We've experienced many things. We've experienced a much stronger sense of cohesion. We've seen humanity emerge in many areas — young people buying groceries for elderly persons, for instance.

We've also seen new heroes emerge — the cashiers who held the line at their registers with iron determination, knowing these were not easy situations. Nurses who exhausted themselves helping and supporting. It was a great country, a great display of solidarity — a wonderful, very human trait that we should never forget can emerge.

And we should all hope that something like this always remains. However, some parts of society are withdrawing from this sense of community. They're radicalizing, asking angry questions, making strange assumptions. We witnessed scenes where crowds pushed up to the steps of the Reichstag.

Driven by an enormous mass of questioning rage, a struggle for answers — presumably from the wrong sources. We witnessed that too, and it was partly disturbing, somewhat shattering. Those were answers, but presumably answers from the wrong side.

Have you ever seen the photos — before the crisis and during the crisis — of nature and environmental development, of environmental pollution? Then it became very clear: suddenly nature began to reclaim areas. We suddenly saw that air pollution had decreased significantly, that CO2 emissions fell by 4.6 percent worldwide — a complete positive transformation of our environment.

And we noticed that it's actually okay when you don't fly for once, when you don't drive the car — that's fine. When people ride bicycles, cities come alive with cyclists — a completely new picture. This development continues, a positive aspect that has helped our planet to take a breath. A positive aspect that was also enjoyable and that we liked.

The question arises: can we maintain this? Can we sustain this spirit of activity, this awareness? I have my doubts, unfortunately.

Corona was also the period when we received the greatest digitalization boost ever — in Germany, in Europe, probably worldwide. The biggest push into a digital economy. Was it a good thing? In many areas, yes — we began to digitalize, moving out of an old, outdated, rigid industrial economy and jumping into this new ocean of digitalization. That creates opportunities.

But we also saw we hit limits. We saw how it was deployed in education — but we also saw some failures. We realized students and teachers weren't prepared. We saw paper being mailed. Programs wouldn't run. Learning materials weren't available on the cloud.

We also learned that some schools don't have internet. We noticed that in some cases there were no email addresses, and we realized that pedagogical training for teachers in this area hadn't really been addressed. These are huge opportunities, but we need to fix them. We need to make the leap forward to be better prepared.

We need IT competence. We need software expertise. We need knowledge to better anticipate developments, to have better talent for the economy and industry, and thereby become a better, more modern state.

It's the world of a gigabit society that we dream of — a modern, highly connected, optimistic, and humanistic society. That's where we want to contribute, and where we all still need to work hard. It's a genuine concern of ours, and we really want to make progress there.

What do we learn from this? For me, there are three points. First: give nature more than just a breather. Only if we can carry forward the positive impulses and active measures — when we suddenly feel how things are turning, how something is changing for the better for us and for the planet — then we know we've achieved something.

That includes various things: using electricity and energy from renewable sources, eliminating plastic, making very conscious use of environmentally responsible resources. It also means thinking through every step, knowing your CO2 footprint, considering what else you can do to drive a circular economy, to recycle and rethink things.

How do you lead a modern company with minimal waste? How do you run a company that aligns with nature — which is ultimately better for us humans too? A life where you recognize the good things. It can be healthier, it can be better, and it's definitely good for our children and grandchildren. That's a direction worth striving for — something to be proud of.

The second point: embrace digitalization. Do we believe in it? Do we believe that technology can help us better manage and master challenges? Do we believe that digitalization is a foundation for the future? Only if we prepare ourselves well here will we have a better future. The future always happens when you shape it — that's also how it looks, the way you want it.

Looking at how things might unfold if we don't do enough — it's important and it remains important to believe in digitalization and to set real priorities here. To believe that we can move something, and ultimately to live it, knowing that it truly helps us and also helps our children.

And a third point that I don't want to miss: can we be braver? Do we take more risks? And are we excited to have that courage, to take those risks? Simply finding an approach that excites us — to have the courage to try something we didn't dare before.

We know today that we can manage almost everything. We are adaptable, and these challenges can be a tremendous opportunity to transform ourselves — courage for the new, courage for great things, courage for nature, courage for humanity, but ultimately also for living a self-determined and reflective life.

That's what I wish for all of us, and I believe it could truly lead us into a good future. Thank you.