Drei Ratschläge an Dein 14jähriges Ich!

It’s important to be open and curious. It's good to have a plan but you also have to be able to deviate a little to be able to take chances. I think that's very important. Having fun is very important. In life and at work. That's much more important than anything else. Then you are also motivated. And motivation is also crucial to be able to do a good job.

Was steht auf Deiner Visitenkarte?

I am Marco Tobler. I work for Bühler as a product manager in the die casting division.

Was ist das coolste an Deinem Job?

The coolest thing is to work together in teams. That's what I like to do: Working together interactively and interdisciplinary in different groups. Travelling is also extremely fun. I like to go to customers. I enjoy when I can be with customers and talk to them. I like the variety that the position in product management brings with it. As I said before there are a lot of different tasks that you have to master. That makes it extremely exciting, because every day is different and you experience a lot.

Welche Einschränkungen bringt Dein Job mit sich?

Limitations? Difficult to say. I think it's more the challenge that's a bit difficult sometimes. There are a lot of tasks running in parallel. You have to meet deadlines. You have to deliver. You have to somehow keep your head above water to balance all the tasks correctly. It's certainly exhausting and demanding, but as I said it's fun. And the only limitation in this sense is that you have to be flexible from time to time. But otherwise there are no limitations in this job.

Worum geht es in Deinem Job?

Bühler is a global company that offers technologies and processes. On the one hand for the processing of staple foods, but on the other hand also for the processing and manufacturing of special materials. I am a product manager and work in the field of die casting. Die casting is about making machines and equipment available to our customers, as well as control systems and plant controls that produce die-cast parts out of aluminium, mostly for the automotive industry. As a product manager, you are responsible for developing, maintaining and further developing the product portfolio and making it appropriate for the market. The second part of the product manager's job involves ensuring that the products are profitable that they can be used over a longer period of time and that they also generate a profit for Bühler over a longer period of time. Some of the main activities are being together with customers, discussing, learning what the market needs, following trends, attending certain forums and information events and then bringing the knowledge into the company and thereby cooperating with the construction team which can afterwards develop the products accordingly. On the other hand, as a product manager you have a lot of other tasks to do. For example to give sales trainings or to train new employees internally. We also have many appointments with customers to present the product. We also go to trade fairs that support us. We do this together with the marketing department. Product management is closely linked to marketing. These are the tasks we do in product management.

Wie sieht Dein Werdegang aus?

I grew up in Zuzwil in St. Gallen and joined Bühler immediately after high school. I did an apprenticeship here as a design engineer. In the past, the name for this position was machine draughtsman. Then I went to an evening technical school and studied mechanical engineering. This is also called mechatronics. It is an evening course of studies that lasts four years. Then I studied for the graduate engineer. I then worked for a long time at Bühler as a development engineer and as a project manager in R&D in the development department. I was also in charge of the design department in die casting for five years. I also worked in other departments at Bühler, such as the mill sector feed, and also a little bit in the area of pasta. That’s why I have a very versatile background. But I've always worked for Bühler. For 19 years now. I became a product manager when I wanted to change from the technology area more into the business area. So it was a bit of a different direction. Then I did further educational training. I did my Master in Business Administration at the University of Applied Sciences Sankt Gallen. At that time I changed to the position of product management and have been product manager for die casting systems for two and a half years now.

Ginge es auch ohne Deinem Werdegang?

Of course, you don't have to be a “Bühler child” to become a Bühler product manager. A technical background is certainly an advantage, but that's not a must have. As a product manager, it is important to be an allrounder, so you can understand many different departments, and to have an understanding of either technical or business related tasks. Communication and marketing skills are also very important.