Name: Frank Hess

Title: Head of Cooperation Section

Organisation: Delegation of the European Union to Armenia

I have studied business, economics, and international relations in Germany and France and worked as a teacher for some time. I have then worked in international development cooperation in various countries and organizations all over the world.

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Leadership!

I hope Frank's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as a leader?

To deal with structural issues in my organization as these are very difficult to change

2. How did you become a leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

When I worked in school as a teacher, I was naturally assigned that position, and this helped me in my future leadership in business positions. I then applied for a position as a leader after having been the number 2 in the unit for a long time, which helped me prepare to become the number one, and then I was selected. I then decided to try to do a good job, and since then, I have been keeping positions as a leader.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

I start with doing some language exercises and then some physical ones. Then I walk to my office and try to get an overview of what the day will bring to me. I then deal with emails, and then I usually deal with one difficult and/or important dossier that I want to get done during the day. I have an open-door policy, so my colleagues can always walk in and ask for advice. I then have meetings or deal with other files, and I try to schedule some time for deep work. When I go home, I try to let off some energy. At home, I dedicate maybe another hour for dealing with files, usually emails, and sometimes I need to attend some dinners and social functions, which I do not particularly like. I then try to unwind and read some fiction and spend time with my lady.

4. What's a recent leadership lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of?

It is important to listen to your employees and try to understand what is bothering them. Good listening is a difficult skill, and I can improve on this a lot.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so

far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

The book is called Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemann. It showed me the fallacies of our mind and the pitfalls we may all be exposed to. It has shown me to be more analytical and to take myself less seriously.

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young leader, what would you say to them?

Get as much advice as possible, but make the decisions yourself, and if you don't feel comfortable, then delegate the decision to someone you trust.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a leader, so far? Many of the people who have worked for me come to ask me for advice for their future career because I think they trust me and that they know I will try to give them some unbiased advice. And when they follow my advice (which they, of course, do not always do), I feel happy and grateful, and it makes me proud to see them grow professionally and privately