MAWW Chairman (Jens Moller) and Vice-Chairman (Jacques Jetten) presented the Board proposal. The proposal had one main purpose: to kick off a discussion to take us further. In fact, everyone agreed that we must definitely do something to reach more ambitious goals. It was a shared feeling that after so many things accomplished in two outstanding decades, it´s not time to pay homage, roll our sleeves up, stand up as comrades in arms and step up.
It was exciting to witness different perspectives from different profiles, cultures, and experiences flow into the discussion. Jens Moller initially highlighted that the New Formula is not to kick anyone out but to keep everyone in. And this spirit was the solid ground of the entire dialogue.
By the end, it was clear that there was a very good positive energy to move further, being more ambitious, professional and ready to compete in more demanding segments. But obviously, and as expected, more time has now to be spent on ensuring everyone is aligned on how to proceed. Using a military analogy, everyone agreed on Where to battle, but more time is needed to discuss How to win the war. Within this more tactical or operational process, some aspects deserve more consensus than others. For example, branding is always an obvious field for discussion; there are always different perspectives on supporting growth financially, and considering the various members´ profiles, different perspectives on a future digital backbone were expected. So, it will be a good cooperation case having everyone find a common platform so a better future can be a reality for a greater whole thing.
From the spark of this process, back in 2022, the Board always cleared that the New Formula would always be democratic and inclusive, and this event reflected exactly that. So, the Board announced that the outcome would be very well thought out and that subsequent actions would be planned in line with the spirit of the overall conclusions. Of course, there´s also the overall feeling that something has to be done in the short term to keep the momentum. This also means the feeling of urgency is widely shared, which is per se very encouraging.