From soldering to leading – Daniel's path to becoming a manager

From inquisitive tinkerer to division manager: Daniel Hug shows how technical interest and creative drive can shape a career. His career at maxon is an example of how practical relevance, further training, and leadership successfully interact.

How does a young person with a passion for technology become a senior management member with product responsibility at maxon? In this article, we take a look behind the scenes and talk to Daniel Hug about his career, his challenges, and his view of modern leadership. His story shows that if you keep at it, develop further, and have the courage to change perspectives, an apprenticeship can become a real career path.

"I've always wanted to know how things work."

Even in his childhood, Daniel was fascinated by technology. Whether it was a blender or a motor from the lab, he wanted to find out how things worked and tinkered with them until they ran again or even got better. "I disassembled things, experimented, and, for example, automated my curtains," he says with a smile. What began as childish handicrafts became a vocation.

It quickly became clear to him that he would opt for a technical apprenticeship: the hands-on work, learning in practice, and the opportunity to implement things directly were decisive for him. "You can feel the smell of the industry; sometimes you burn your fingers. That's important to really understand what you're actually doing."

The next step: Theory for practice

After studying engineering and a few years in technology and project management, Daniel was faced with a trend-setting question: Do I want to stay in the depth of technology or go into the breadth of leadership? For him, it was clear: "I want to help shape, bear responsibility, exert influence." With the part-time master's degree in industrial engineering, he deepened his knowledge in business administration, strategy, and product management. It was not a new start, but a conscious further development of his existing skills, with the aim of being able to make even more informed decisions and lead in his role.
 

Leading does not mean administering, but setting an example

Today, Daniel is responsible for a ten-person team as Head of Services and, as Chief Product Owner, for the work of over 30 other employees in the Motion Control R&D department. This involves the precise control of movements in machines and devices, for example, the exact positioning and driving of motors in applications such as robotics or medical technology. His leadership style is based on two basic pillars: trust and being a role model. "I don't want to manage, I want to lead," he says decisively. For him, this means communicating honestly, acting transparently, being open, and leading the way - in good times as well as in difficult times.
His goal is to create an environment in which people can develop optimally. "You also have to be able to let go, hand over responsibility and coach instead of controlling. This is the only way we can achieve sustainable results as a team."
 

Between everyday business and future strategy

There is no such thing as a typical working day for Daniel, and that's exactly what makes his role exciting. Sometimes it's about the strategic development of the product platforms, sometimes about the short-term support of development teams. His premise is always the same: remove obstacles so that others can work efficiently.
He counts the balancing act between short-term customer focus and long-term product strategy as one of the biggest challenges. 

Review without regrets

Although his path was challenging with the constant double burden of job and part-time training and further education, Daniel has never regretted his decisions. "I'm an optimist. I believe that you can make the best of every decision if you make it consciously and burn for the cause." Especially in stressful situations, it helps him to stay clear, set priorities, and react calmly. "Our work is not directly about human lives. That helps to maintain the right perspective."

Standing still is not an option

In a world that is spinning faster and faster, continuous learning and personal development are more important than ever. The exchange with colleagues, trade magazines, trade fairs, and webinars, all this is part of Daniel's everyday life. "You have to have feelers everywhere," he says. He is currently particularly interested in the topic of behavioral patterns and how they can be influenced in a targeted manner. A topic that concerns him both professionally and personally.

His advice to young talents

Daniel has a clear piece of advice for young people who are interested in technology: "Do an apprenticeship!" For him, the path via apprenticeship, vocational baccalaureate, and university of applied sciences is the ideal way into the technology industry. "You understand the practice better, enjoy the theory more, and start the next level with valuable experience."