Derk Sauer, Founder and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Independent Media Sanoma Magazines, is telling us how he has fun and makes profit by working with independent people and living the principles.
1. How do you manage creative part of your business?
This is what gives most fun in our business - to sit down with our editors and to discuss what sort of magazine we want to make. What makes my magazine different from someone else's magazine and how do I define it? What is the unique selling point of my magazine? And of course you can sit down with your editors and agree on that. Why is Esquire, Esquire? Why is Cosmopolitan, Cosmopolitan? There are reasons for that. Basically again its very simple: I always ask my editor: "Say in three words what your magazine is about?" If an editor can't say it in three words, here is a problem. The magazine will not be successful. So Cosmopolitan is about success, sex and myself. That's simple. You don't have to be a genius. As long as the editor of Cosmopolitan understands that anything she writes there should have something to do with these issues we will be making a good magazine. But again, people make things very complicated. And the main thing about management is to make things which seem to be complicated very simple.
2. How do you choose your people?
First of all I never hired people using only money as an incentive. People should find it an honor to work here. If I have an interview with someone who wants to work here and in the first interview the person starts talking about money I wouldn't hire this person. If money is so important then you are not for Independent Media. That's one. Two, I would like to hire young people. I just sense the personality. You know we have very young editors-in-chief here and very young managers. Knowledge is for me not so important. You can learn the skills but personality is much more important. So what I look for if I hire people first of all is personality. If you interview someone and see this is original spirit and independent thinking person - that's what important for me. You can learn everything else. What we do is not a rocket science. The most important is to have an independent mind.
3. Some executives are afraid their people will be headhunted if they become too visible.
I am not afraid of someone hiring my people. You know, it's an organic process: you start, you grow up, you become successful and then you move on. It's life. I don't mind such development. For some people its better to go on and do something else somewhere else. Nothing's wrong with it. We find always new people so I am not worried about keeping my staff. If they want to stay - great, if they want to leave - fine too.
4. Do you try to persuade your people to stay if they are going to leave?
I say: if you want to stay - stay. If you want to go - go. I also never become angry if people leave me. Managers very often feel betrayed: "I've put so much energy into this person, I've educated him and now he is betraying me by leaving". I don't have it. If someone is leaving, the life may be better for him somewhere else. There should be only one objective in your life, I always tell people, and it is to be happy. That's all you should be interested in. If you are happy here - stay here. If you think you will be happier somewhere else, please, try it.
5. And what makes you happy?
Ok, for me money is not an issue. I didn't become a businessman because I wanted a lot of money. It probably makes me different from a lot of people - I am completely not interested in money. I am interested in working with people. I am interested in making nice products. I am interested in exploring myself - in learning about myself by working with other people. And then if it's successful, it makes money - great. And if it's not so successful, it doesn't make money - fine too. For me it's not about the goal, its about the travel. It's about the experience. Life is an experience. This is important for me. Money is the least interesting thing of all. And among the very rich people who are interested in money nine of ten are very unhappy people.
6. People claim running big business means a lot of responsibilities.
Of course I have responsibilities but I don't really feel responsible. I moved these responsibilities to people around me. Now they are responsible. They are responsible for their own lives. The can take their lives in their hands. A lot of Russian businesses are run from one center in all directions down. In this case you are very responsible because you have to keep a lot of things going. And if then something happens to you? I something happens to me, there is no problem because the company can live without me. That why I don't feel so great responsibility.
7. Can you give examples of people who feel independent in your company?
Lena Myasnikova is now the CEO of the company. She started as a translator. Misha Doubik who came here as a starting journalist is now running Vedomosti. And Vedomosti is really a big shop. Take Katya Kabakchi who is responsible for the Cosmo group. She is very young and very smart woman. And again she runs it like her own and she feels that everything that is Cosmo is hers. And so we have for every unit whether its Esquire, whether its Harper's. And we everywhere have these people who feel responsible for what's going on.
8. What are your most important principles in business?
Everyone who starts working for Independent Media (means me) should understand the basic rules of the company. We have two things. First, we have a slogan "Fun and profit". Because you need to make profit to have fun. You need to by something. To have a good business you have to make some profit. So our slogan is "Fun and Profit". And second, we have three very firm guidelines. One is Quality. Everything we do has to be of high quality. Magazines, design and so on. Second is Independence. Because we are an independent company. So we don't write for the government or against the government, fir the other guys or against the other guys we just report what we think is fair and honest. Third, of course, is Honesty. We do everything white, we don't take bribes, journalists don't take money for articles. These three principles are extremely important for Independent Media.
9. How are these principles realized in everyday life?
Its very simple - you just read our newspapers. You read Vedomosti and you know this is an independent newspaper. You read the Moscow Times and you know we are not for sale. As to "Fun and Profit" we've always been a profitable company. We never took loans from banks. We've never been in someone's pocket or dependent on someone. And we've built our own business. This is very important. All the titles we launched ourselves. So I think we live by our principles.
10. What would you say to people who may still have questions?
I will only tell come and work for us and you will see for yourself. I don't need to defend myself. If people come and work here - great. If they don't - fine too. People who work here know that this is a nice company to work for. They know it from experience. It's like with good food - you have to try it. And then you will understand.
