Survey shows

Top jobs: it’s not ability that counts, but contacts

Alfred Gusenbauer and Signa: a prime example of how top jobs are awarded in the economy ...(Bild: APA/Roland Schlager APA/Helmut Fohringer, Krone KREATIV)

The Signa bankruptcy makes it clear that top jobs on supervisory boards do not always go to the best and most independent candidates. In politics, personal networks count more than competence for promotion to top positions, according to a survey by Marketagent.

Alfred Gusenbauer is a prime example of how it should not be, according to personnel consultant Josef Fritz. "As an advisory board member at Signa, he simultaneously charged fees of over 22 million euros for consulting services and did not necessarily put the good of the company first." A critical examination of Signa founder René Benko's business was apparently not carried out for years by the entire advisory board, which was made up of well-known individuals by Benko himself.

For 78 percent of managers surveyed by market researcher Marketagent, independence from company bosses and owners is the most important criterion for the selection of supervisory board members. Integrity and personal decency follow immediately, while professional competence is only a priority for 66 percent. Only 4 percent of respondents consider celebrities on the supervisory board to be good ...

Wrong decisions by supervisory board members are serious in any case, and for almost 90 percent of respondents they have a lasting negative impact on the company's success. Nevertheless, there is a large gap between aspiration and reality when selecting candidates for these top jobs: for up to three quarters of managers, the regular review of the composition and competence of supervisory bodies is important, but this only takes place in less than one in three companies. 

Personal ties are decisive
Political personnel fare even worse. According to the study, 91 percent of managers consider a sense of responsibility and decency to be the decisive qualities. Just under 77 percent of the population as a whole also share this opinion. For around two thirds each, personality and social competence follow as desirable characteristics. Only one in three think it is important for politicians to have built up good networks to help them climb the career ladder and hold office.

However, the reality is quite different: In fact, 74 percent of managers think that these rope networks are in fact crucial for a career in politics. Among all Austrians, slightly fewer, but still almost 52 percent see it the same way. It's not what they can do, but who they know that counts. Not even 20 percent of the population ascribe social competence, a sense of responsibility, decency and professional experience to Austrian politicians.