This worked because someone brought a different lens, and because leadership backed that vision with trust and investment. That is the deeper point running through the episode: diversity is valuable not because it looks modern, but because it expands what a company can imagine doing next.
Jeschek tells a similar story from the other side: She was new to die-casting but experienced in automotive and electric propulsion; she argues that people entering an industry fresh can ask the questions long-time insiders may have stopped asking. Why do we do it this way? Have we thought about another route? In her experience, these questions, along with a fresh perspective, often sparked very good discussions and helped move things forward.
Do you want fast or good decisions?
In times of crisis, diversity improves decisions, even when it slows them down. Jeschek is blunt: “If a company wants a fast decision, they can put five like-minded people in a room. But if it wants the best decisions, it needs as many different perspectives and skills as possible at the table.” That means more debate between production, engineering, and sales. It means more friction. It means compromise. But the underlying argument is that better decisions in a period of structural change will not come from sameness; they will come from constructive disagreement.
That is where diversity becomes an unmistakable leadership topic. Tronci argues having different people at the table is not enough on its own; the leader must give responsibilities, listen, and create the freedom for people to express ideas that may be unusual in that setting. However, she emphasizes, that many leaders still lack the bravery this requires, because boldness means responsibility, risk, and the possibility of being judged.
Jeschek complements that point with a more operational one: leadership today means investing not only in machines, but in people, know-how, strategy, and the future. Change, she says, must be moderated and managed. It will take time. And it has to come from the top.
Continue this conversation at the EUROGUSS Executive Circle
The Women in DieCasting initiative begins with representation, but it does not end there. It opens into a larger argument about how the industry will renew itself: through mixed teams, broader experience, better debate, bolder leaders, and stronger exchange across company boundaries.
