From mathematics
to real impact

After my studies, at the end of 2015, I was looking for a role where I could apply my interests well. In the final part of my studies, I had focused extensively on game theory and applied microeconomics (behavioral economics). I was interested in how people develop strategies and make decisions. Additionally, I was fundamentally mathematically and quantitatively oriented. So I was looking for a topic that contained both a "soft," human component and interesting quantitative problems. The topic of pricing offered exactly this combination.

When I then got to know the R&P team, the decision was clear. Over the following years, I developed into an expert in complex pricing systems and algorithms at R&P. I led many projects where we optimized and automated pricing for large, heterogeneous portfolios. Many of these projects revolved around spare parts. The methods that my colleagues and I developed in these projects could be applied multiple times and continuously optimized. We realized that many customers had similar problems in pricing these large spare parts and component portfolios. Therefore, in 2018, we decided to take the next step in implementation and turn our methods and tools into "real" pricing software.

So I was there at the "birth" of nueprice and took on the role of "product owner" in the following years. This meant I designed and tested new features for the software together with the development team. The year before last, the offer came to officially take on the role of Managing Director at nueprice. I gladly accepted this exciting challenge.

Traditionally, team meeting moments are mentioned here. I agree and nominate the sailing afternoon in Mallorca on the occasion of R&P's 10th anniversary. It was truly a great team experience.

I find it very appealing to accompany the concepts and methods we have developed in our consulting work all the way to full implementation in our customers' IT landscape. Management consultants are often accused of working superficially and ignoring the problems of the "real" world. I am proud that with nueprice we show that things are different at R&P. We always develop concepts (and yes, sometimes a longer PowerPoint presentation) with the clear goal of making our customers' lives better and easier.

From an IT and software perspective, I am convinced that the close connection with the "mothership" R&P is a great advantage for our customers. Through the many years of experience of our consultants, we not only offer the best methods in our software. We can also warn our customers about content-related or procedural mistakes that are frequently made during the implementation of pricing software. With nueprice, you get both: excellent software plus the pricing know-how of R&P.

Pricing for large, heterogeneous portfolios — for example, spare parts and components — has some unique characteristics. Often, we are talking about hundreds of thousands of products that are very different from each other. You need a pricing system that can calculate an appropriate price for both a standard screw and a complete diesel engine. With many thousands of products, you typically have too little capacity to look at each product individually for pricing. Pricing must therefore be automated as much as possible without ignoring the specific differences between product types. To meet these requirements, a differentiated approach to pricing is needed. In particular, a variety of pricing methods are necessary that must automatically apply depending on the priority of the product and the available data (such as master data but also market data).

The data situation is often a problem in itself. Anyone who wants to price automatically must be able to rely on their data. Otherwise, margin losses threaten, or worse, the loss of customer trust when pricing errors are made. Especially during periodic price adjustments for large portfolios, ensuring data and price quality often paralyzes entire departments for weeks. We can dramatically shorten these processes with nueprice's fully automated, live data connection.

This combination of data intensity (Excel quickly reaches its limits with high item counts, even with good data quality) and the multi-method approach makes the use of professional software for spare parts and complex component portfolios so important. Only with a system-connected, process-safe software like nueprice can sustainable and efficient pricing be ensured.

It is difficult to single out one project here. I believe the most exciting thing about my job is that every project is exciting in its own way. I have learned that every project, no matter how much method and industry knowledge you bring, has its own unique themes and dynamics. As a consultant, you are well advised not to rest on your prior knowledge, but to constantly question and adapt it in light of the specific history, focus topics, and personnel constellation of the customer. This applies even to the very specific topic of spare parts pricing and nueprice. Here too, every project has customer-specific challenges that must be taken into account. The art is recognizing whether individual challenges also require individual solutions, or whether the customer can benefit from an approach that has led to success at other companies.

In my free time, a lot revolves around sports. I come from a "table tennis family" and have been chasing the celluloid (now plastic) ball since my earliest childhood. In recent years, I have been playing padel with growing enthusiasm — a variation of tennis originating from the Spanish-speaking world. Additionally, you can often find me on Saturday afternoons at Cologne's RheinEnergieStadion. Suffering along with the football club "Effzeh" is also among my long-standing hobbies.

As a contrast to my hometown, I try to get to the mountains as often as possible to enjoy the views that are mostly absent in the Cologne area. I do this through hiking, but also gladly on skis in winter.