Identität gestalten

Ingeborg Scheer dasign CEO and Holder interviewed

“I love what I do!”

Questions asked by Sascha Rebiger, journalist and freelancer for the dasign team

 

Mrs Scheer, you have been the driving force and creative mastermind of dasign since 1997… What motivates you?

Well…Many things. I consider myself somewhat of a wanderer and builder of worlds, I am passionate about developing systems of all types and simply inventing new things in general. Every organisation, every brand, every project and every single personality has its own identity and is essentially its own world. Discovering and understanding this world, then contributing towards its design, helping to construct it and watching it grow are true pleasures for me. As I am an all-rounder, thinking outside & inside the box, at times even tearing it up, and am interested in a great many things, my work suits me perfectly: I have access to an incredibly wide variety of topics and contents, tasks with several possible solutions and options. I love a good challenge and great results. Being creative yet intelligent and practical – something is good, if it is beautiful and flawless in its functionality. And I enjoy the privilege of meeting new, interesting and exciting people every day. In short – I am doing what I love!

That sums up “designing identity”. What else is special about dasign?

Creativity and the highest quality standards! The process orientation and the high-output of a large agency, while benefiting of the extreme flexibility our small, interconnected team is capable of. Every client of ours is important; this includes their interests as well as their person!

Interconnected team, how is this to be understood? Freelancers? Project groups?

All our creative and intelligent minds, forming the basis of dasign, are full-time employees. This ensures 100% reliability for all team members and, more importantly, for the client as well. Freelancers simply cannot provide such a guarantee and dedication, as they have to serve other clients too. Nevertheless our freelancers do provide an integral service to the dasign team, as they support us in many ways, be it inspirational, as specialists or experts and at peak performance times, as a matter of course. Within our production and supply chains we have longstanding partners, who we can fully rely on, function seamlessly with our team and deliver high quality work. This is absolutely paramount to our survival as a full service agency – we are after all measured by our results. In order to achieve anything we follow extensive processes involving many parties.

Networking structures within teamwork are inherent to us, just as our Spirit still remains as enthusiastic as that of a start-up. Our team is always engrossed and enthralled by the projects we work on; all are completely dedicated and passionate about the topic and the job at hand. Every team member has his or her own strengths and personal competence concerning client care and project work. Focussing on these individual skills and tending to ones important business relationships is advantageous and ensures optimal service. However we do not have departments or people dedicated to only one task here at dasign. Within our team every single member assumes different and several roles parallel, just as the project requires. This allows us to be extremely flexible and efficient; teams are formed according to needs and there is no top-down hierarchy. We thus limit gruelling internal competition, as every member of the team is equally versatile, and rather focus our energies on personal development. Every person at dasign is important, only the roles are different. As I have said: everyone according to his or her own strengths and preferences. When it matters, nobody is above or too good for a certain task that must be done.

And who makes the Coffee?

Our very own fully automated Jura espresso machine is responsible for the delicious ceffeinated beverage - at the press of a button.

You have been an accredited insights discovery practitioner for over a year now and have also recently very successfully completed change management consultation courses. In addition you have two degrees, one in design the other in PR. Will you have ever learned enough?

I suppose I will never have learned enough, no. I follow the principle of life-long learning; plus I am incredibly curious. And, admittedly, I am a little “greedy” when it concerns knowledge and skills; new things just drive me on. There are still two whole folders filled to the brim with new business ideas in my shelf and I have registered three more brands – unfortunately life is a little too short to do it all. But in connection with other smart people and my extensive networks beyond dasign alone, I wish to at least initiate and partake in as much as possible over the next ten years. Over the last 18 years I, with the support of my team, have promoted the essentials. This does make decisions easier, as there are no objections or counter proposals, however the impact and appeal of working in this manner are limited. In future I wish to expand the possibilities, not only for myself but also for the entire dasign team. Besides it is good fun working together with interesting and great people – I am really looking forward to that.