Ms. Ordnung, a recent newspaper article in Frankfurt Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) focuses on etiquette lessons for students. It says that a culture of informality, flat hierarchies and casual dress unsettle young professionals and drive them to etiquette seminars. Do you also observe this insecurity among your job starters?
My job starters are not insecure, which is certainly also due to the fact that they actively study etiquette and behavioral rules before they join my department. The students in the FAZ article very probably found themselves in situations that were unpleasant for them for the first time. Until then, they may not have even realized that they were missing something.
How do you prepare new starters in your department so that you are spared a faux pas with your VIPs?
I don't send new team members on an etiquette course, but we regularly take time to discuss protocol issues within the team. Recently, we were all on the floor laughing in the conference room because we were practising royal greetings. Of course, I also demonstrate how not to do it. Even after 20 years in protocol, there are always new situations that prompt me to talk to my team about the best way to handle things.
Did you ever put your foot in your mouth at the beginning of your career that you still remember today?
Yes, in my younger years I actually celebrated a blunder all the time. The protocol recommends a heel height of five to eight centimetres for women. That's the most boring heel height for me. I'm a fan of high heels. But 20 years ago, I still wore heels that were ten centimetres high – even at the opening of the Heimtextil trade fair with the Portuguese head of government. The journalist from the Financial Times Deutschland was probably bored and in his article he actually drew parallels between my heel height and the high Portuguese state deficit. My shoes had become the subject of the report. An absolute faux pas, because the report itself is of course only allowed to operate in the background.
Would you or your department ever wear sneakers to an event?
Of course, there are situations, such as at our Eurobike trade fair, where I would look completely dressed up in patent leather shoes. Etiquette also means dressing appropriately for the occasion so as not to attract attention.
"The issue of business etiquette is no longer as present as it used to be."
Has etiquette in our company changed over time?
I've been with the company for 31 years, 20 of them as Head of Protocol. Etiquette in our company is very liberal; there is no dress code. From the point of view of a head of protocol, however, I think it would be good to have one. When I walk through our Intermezzo canteen, especially in summer, I notice that the topic of business etiquette is no longer as present here as it used to be. I don't think flip-flops and bare legs are okay in an area where partners and customers might also be. I notice that we often wear a lot of casual clothing. I don't want uniformed people here, but I would like to encourage people to think: How do I go into a meeting? How do I meet someone new? And that starts with my choice of clothes.
Does it make a difference whether the guests are domestic or foreign?
As we are a very international company, we should pay even more attention to our dress code at work. In Asian or Arab countries, for example, the dress code is stricter and more formal. Imagine riding in our elevators with an Asian guest who is wearing a suit and tie and then someone with bare legs and flip-flops gets on. Etiquette is very country-specific. In China, you're not allowed to blow your nose at the table even if you have hay fever.
"Don't we all feel more appreciated when we look up briefly and greet each other?"
What else is important to you when it comes to good etiquette?
The dress code is the most obvious aspect of etiquette, but it's also about social interaction. I often walk through the corridors here and employees are engrossed in their iPhones. They either mumble something to themselves or say nothing at all. Don't we all feel more valued when we look up briefly and greet each other - even if I don't know the person in the corridor? If I make a critical comment like that, it's not because I'm arrogant and know everything better, but because I'm concerned about how we come across as a company.
What is the biggest challenge in your work on the red carpet?
We plan everything meticulously for months, and then things turn out quite differently at short notice, for example due to a postponement. One of the tasks of our job is to make sure that everything always looks like it went smoothly.
Your team of seven comes into contact with a lot of high-ranking celebrities, such as the German Federal President Walter Steinmeier and the Spanish royal couple at the opening of the book fair last October. Do such visits still give you a thrill?
Stage fright and thrills are still there. At the beginning of my time as head of protocol 20 years ago, the thrill was: how do I manage certain things? Today I know that I can handle many situations, but that doesn't make me any calmer because I still experience absurd situations that cause a lot of excitement. But so far everything has always gone well.
Ms. Ordnung, thank you very much for the interview!