Professional Women Power: Passing on trust and support

published on 1. August 2023

In the context of our career blog “professional women power”, female colleagues introduce themselves,

talk about their career paths and day to day work at Rödl & Partner.

In this way, we would like to raise awareness of women as well as motivate female applicants and colleagues

to bravely pursue their individual career paths at Rödl & Partner.

„The trust and support I have received from all my leaders over the years is something

I am happy to pass on to the next generation today.“

SABRINA ARENDS

Sabrina Arends has been working for Rödl & Partner in Nuremberg since 2000. She has 2 children and, as Director Global IT Services in the Global Digital Services service unit, is responsible for over 30 colleagues worldwide.

How did your professional career start and how did you get to where you are now?

In fact, I am a so-called "Rödl home-grown", as I jokingly call it. My start at Rödl & Partner began quite classically with a commercial apprenticeship. During this time, I was able to get to know various stations in the company and after a short time I was asked if I would like to start in the "IT department" (it was the early 2000s, when it was still called that) after my training. This was, so to speak, my first step in my career at Rödl & Partner and the first active promotion I experienced. Over the years, this was followed by several more opportunities to not only develop personally and professionally, but also to take on more and more responsibility. First professionally, but later also as a manager. Since the technological demands on the company and its growth have constantly expanded, also and especially in an international context, the Global Digital Services service unit was founded in 2019. In the meantime, as Director Global IT Services, I am responsible for more than 30 colleagues who - distributed all over the world - ensure that the employees of Rödl & Partner can work as smoothly as possible and are also supported as quickly as possible in case of questions.

What do you enjoy most about your work as Director Global IT Services? What are the challenges and how do you deal with them?

I really enjoy working in a team and what I appreciate most is the trusting cooperation where we support each other, develop new ideas and master all the ups and downs together. In doing so, it is always a challenge to bring everyone together in the same "virtual" place at the same time, as my colleagues work in different time zones and countries. Even though the cultural differences sometimes force us to find creative solutions, for me it is also the greatest treasure we have: Everyone brings their experience, strengths and different perspectives to the table and helps us to break new ground and think outside the box. When communication is particularly difficult, I pick up the headset and bring people together.

In the area of Global IT Operations & Service, we not only ensure stable IT operations, but also set the course for new technologies and adapt the use of new services in the best possible way for our business. Good change management and active professional support with a lot of empathy and proactive communication are important in order to implement the changes in the best possible way and with added value for everyone. In addition to the global orientation of the company, the permanent confrontation with new technological challenges is one reason why I don't get bored even after so many years and why I can continue to develop myself.

And now let's be honest: How do you reconcile all that? Do you have an insider tip?

Tip number one: Humour! Only if you can take a deep breath in difficult situations and take the whole thing with humour will you find your way out of the valley again. This applies to me both professionally and privately. In the team we like to laugh together, it strengthens the cohesion and shows that we are all only human. Especially during the pandemic, that literally saved us.

Tip number two: Accept help! You can't be successful without a social and professional network. I learned that sometimes you have to give things away and need a helping hand to cope with everyday life in your job and family. Without the support of my family as well as my colleagues, it would not have been possible to make it this far. At Rödl & Partner, we call this the "caring partner principle". The trust and support I have received from all my managers over the years is something I am happy to pass on to the next generation today.

Thank you Sabrina for the exciting insights into your career path and your everyday working life! It's great that you are part of our career blog.