“Peter Drucker, one of the most important management gurus of the 20th century, says, ‘Leadership abilities develop when making decisions on the field and taking responsibility.”
As we close the year 2024, an awards ceremony was held for the 2023 exporters. Generally, this awards ceremony takes place in the second half of the year, as it is believed that compiling and processing the data from the previous year takes time.
Leather and Leather Goods manufacturers who achieved success in exports were awarded based on their export volume. While the awards ceremony took place at the Raffles Hotel in previous years, this year it was held at TIM (Turkey Exporters Assembly).
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In his speech, TIM President Mustafa Gültepe addressed the reasons behind the decline experienced in the Leather and Leather Products sector in 2023. The sector witnessed a 9.5% decrease, which was not an anticipated outcome. Typically, such fluctuations follow a predictable curve, but this unexpected drop has raised concerns for 2024 and 2025.
- 2021: $1.73 billion, with a 29.6% increase
- 2022: $2.20 billion, with a 15.4% increase
- 2023: $1.80 billion, reflecting a 9.5% decrease
- 2024 (First 6 Months): $0.75 billion, making it clear that a further decline is imminent.
These outcomes are not unique to Turkey; however, countries like Turkey are much more rapidly affected by social and economic developments both domestically and internationally.
The fastest impact is observed in the leather industry, which, in turn, acts as a signal for potential challenges that could arise in other industries as well.
Given this context, it can be said that the award ceremony took place with a touch of disappointment.
On behalf of Egedamla Deri, I had the opportunity to receive the export award, and that day, I decided to draw a conclusion. This month’s article is centered around that moment.
In the 2023 export awards, Egedamla Leather was awarded in the gold category. On behalf of Egedamla Leather, I would like to thank all my labourer friends who contributed to this championship, even though I succeeded in getting this championship that day. This is an indication of the labour, perseverance and tightening. A team of my friends who have exhibited this labour and perseverance within Egedamla Deri have been able to share this blessed excitement with their surroundings with peace of mind, have succeeded and continue to succeed. I would like to thank my family, who has never spared the settings determined by these conditions, and then Egedamla Deri’s one and only working for him. I wish to achieve more beautiful sustainable success with this excitement and determination.
TEAM INVESTMENT IN THE PROGRESS OF THE LEATHER INDUSTRY
The thing I noticed most clearly at the award ceremony held at TIM (Turkish Exporters Assembly) was that the faces at this award ceremony, which I have been attending for a long time, were the same. Although there were very valuable professionals in many companies, the participants of this ceremony were largely bosses.
Of course, although companies want to attend such valuable ceremonies held once a year with the highest authority of the company, and this can be partially done by the bosses in small and medium-sized companies, it did not seem normal to me that it was always going on like this.
Among the faces of boss-professional teams that we often know from other events and fairs, the fact that almost 90% of them were boss faces showed me that the path followed by the sector was not exactly correct.
As the sector has taken a downward turn and with year-end evaluation meetings being planned, shouldn’t there be a focus on personnel investment as well? Given the challenges faced, investing in skilled personnel and fostering a strong team could be a crucial step in ensuring the long-term sustainability and growth of the industry. Without addressing this, companies may struggle to adapt to changes or maintain their competitive edge.
Working with the same personnel for an extended period, especially in blue-collar roles, helped establish a certain level of order and organization in the work performed by that team.
Working in the same role for an extended period, especially in white-collar positions, helped grasp the details of the job, allowed for more practical and faster actions, and somewhat facilitated learning from mistakes. However, it was unable to support the company’s competitiveness in the changing global conditions.
Both companies in the sector do not consider their workforce sufficient, and they do not feel the need to develop their teams through regular and continuous training. As a result, while white-collar employees perform their tasks efficiently within their areas of responsibility, they are unable to demonstrate the development needed by the company.
The name of what is being developed is simply the ability to perform the job more practically. That’s all.
The missing part is Social and Technical skills; Management, Leadership, Vision, Goal Setting, Technical expertise. These are not points to be underestimated. These are the key elements that will ensure your company stays firmly grounded when business is slow or declining, and will help the company build and develop its brand and corporate identity when business is on the rise.
It is essential for us to support the development of what we could call the secondary skills of our white-collar employees.
A highly experienced technician will only be able to involve their team in the work through the development of leadership abilities. Otherwise, no matter what we call an experienced technical person-manager, they will not be able to steer the company in the right direction. The relevant manager will pull the company in direction X, part of the team in direction Y, and another part in direction Z. As a result, the company will not make any significant progress.
A technical employee at the beginning of their career should gain different statuses in the following years. It is expected that they will take on additional responsibilities, such as being in charge of production, and also train a new technician to replace themselves.
A financier at the beginning of their career, even though they may be called by different titles in small and medium-sized companies, should not only be listing payments and conducting basic-level follow-ups between the bank and the company. They should also be developing the ability to generate resources. Today, the best universities in the world conduct field studies to develop the ability to generate resources.
While the company’s front-facing staff, such as salespeople, marketers, and buyers, can perform their tasks in a balanced, practical manner with some shortcuts within an established system, they should be able to see markets and suppliers beyond what is considered secondary. They should be capable of steering the company toward more secure, larger, and new opportunities.
We can multiply these examples extensively. At its core, it is necessary to expand the staff’s areas of responsibility, both within the scope of their fundamental tasks and in terms of management duties. To be able to handle this, the necessary environment, training, and responsibilities must be provided.
Peter Drucker, one of the most important management gurus of the 20th century, says, ‘Leadership abilities develop when making decisions on the field and taking responsibility.
However, under these conditions, they could pave the way for the development of more qualified and skilled new employees. A staff member who doesn’t feel secure will not sincerely support the addition of enthusiastic new team members, as they may fear being replaced by them.
If we were to summarize in one word: invest in your staff, give them responsibility, and witness their development. This will be the most effective and cost-efficient path for the company’s progress..
