insights
Women @KraussMaffei: Stefanie Köpp
| Ana Laura Vera
We present strong women at KraussMaffei
Stefanie Köpp has been part of the company for 18 years, starting as an apprentice right after high school. Her passion for technology led her to pursue a dual training program and later assume a pivotal role in machine development. Now she´s head of the mechanical development department and is able to combine her interest in technology with her strong leadership skills.
AHEAD
Can you tell us more about your professional career in the company, from your training to your current position as team leader?
Stefanie Köpp
After graduating from high school, I decided to do an apprenticeship first. I had always been interested in science and technology, which is why I trained as a technical draughtswoman. After my apprenticeship, I completed a dual course of study. During my studies, I worked three days a week in the twin-screw contract design department and, over time, took on more advanced tasks - mainly orders for customer-specific laboratory machines. Shortly after completing my studies, I was given the opportunity to work in the development department on the ZE BluePower laboratory machine. I found it incredibly exciting to develop a new machine and work on every detail to achieve the best possible result. I was then also involved in the development of the next sizes of the ZE-BluePower series and was then able to switch completely to the development department. I really enjoyed organizing a team there and motivating team members.
AHEAD
There was then a major restructuring at the Hanover site - what happened next for you?
Stefanie Köpp
The development department was divided into process engineering and mechanics, with mechanical development being assigned to the newly created engineering department. In this move, I took over from the then Head of Department, Michael Behling. With the introduction of MIND, I was then able to take over as team leader of mechanical development.
AHEAD
As a team leader, you have played a key role in developing your department from a small team into a larger unit in recent years. How did you proceed?
Stefanie Köpp
I worked with the global development team primarily on processes and cross-location coordination. I put a lot of energy into optimizing the processing of development projects and added a project manager to my team for this purpose. I continue to work with her on optimizing development processes to make developments more efficient and transparent. It is very important to me that our products are viewed holistically, which is why I am very pleased that I now also have points of contact with automation topics. Together with other team leaders, I have worked towards standardized machine visualization and programming across all locations. I was also able to add the necessary experts to my team in this area.
AHEAD
Not only men but also some women work in your department - not a matter of course in a technical department. How have you managed to establish a more diverse working environment?
Stefanie Köpp
For me, what counts first and foremost are the skills and abilities that are important for the tasks in our department. For us, diversity therefore doesn't just refer to gender, but rather to the diversity of individual skills. This enables us to develop our products holistically and the intensive internal coordination gives everyone new perspectives that go beyond their own specialist area. We also live this across departmental boundaries. But one thing is clear: as a woman in a male-dominated profession, I have definitely had more male than female colleagues in my professional life. Occasionally, of course, there have been "old men's club" situations, but my experiences have been mostly positive.
AHEAD
As a successful woman in a traditionally male industry, do you have any special strategies that you can share here?
Stefanie Köpp
As a woman, you need a lot of assertiveness and passion for the job. Personally, my direct manner and my motivation for the job also helped me. However, these points also apply to my male colleagues.
AHEAD
You have built up a very innovative team. Can you tell us a bit more about the solutions your team has developed so far?
Stefanie Köpp
As a team, we mainly worked on the development processes and implemented the project management tool Jira. This allows all development projects to be processed and presented in a transparent and structured manner. The additional use of Confluence means that project reporting is standardized and always up-to-date for everyone. This not only helps me as team leader to always have an up-to-date overview of the project status, but also guarantees sustainable documentation for the company. We are also currently in the process of implementing a uniform product structure across all our products, which will be applied on an interdisciplinary basis (AC, electrics, mechanics, software). This has the advantage that we will be able to benefit from standardization across product boundaries in the future. In this way, we can combine our products more easily in lines and applications.
AHEAD
Can you share a specific challenge you have faced in your career? What did you learn from this experience?
Stefanie Köpp
Especially in the field of development, there are always challenges that you didn't expect. Most of them can be defused with a structured and analytical approach, which can also have a positive impact on development results.
AHEAD
What advice would you give to employees who want to advance their career in an organization?
Stefanie Köpp
Above all, you should have a passion for your job and be able to identify with the products - this helps you to make a lasting contribution to the company's success. It is also important to show a willingness to perform.
stefanie.Koepp@kraussmaffei.com
