{"id":10219,"date":"2026-03-20T11:22:03","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T10:22:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/back-on-track-in-the-year-of-personal-responsibility\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T12:33:05","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T10:33:05","slug":"back-on-track-in-the-year-of-personal-responsibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/back-on-track-in-the-year-of-personal-responsibility\/","title":{"rendered":"Back on Track in the &#8220;Year of Personal Responsibility&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"10219\" class=\"elementor elementor-10219 elementor-4031\" data-elementor-settings=\"{&quot;ha_cmc_init_switcher&quot;:&quot;no&quot;}\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fbdb332 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"fbdb332\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_ha_eqh_enable&quot;:false}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d8e4c07 elementor-widget elementor-widget-ucaddon_headline_mit_trenner\" data-id=\"d8e4c07\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"ucaddon_headline_mit_trenner.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n<!-- start \u00dcberschrift mit Trenner -->\n<style>\/* widget: \u00dcberschrift mit Trenner *\/\n\n#uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 {margin-bottom: -15px}\n#uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h1, #uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h2, #uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h3, #uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h4, #uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h5, #uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 h6 {\n  line-height: 1.1 !important;\n  font-size: inherit;\n  margin-top:0;\n}\n#uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 .mwd-subline {\n  display: inline-block;\n  width: 100%;\n}\n#uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07 .mwd-headline {\n  margin-bottom: 5px;\n}\n\n<\/style>\n\n<div id=\"uc_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_d8e4c07\" class=\"mwd-headline-trenner\">\n  \n\t<div class=\"mwd-headline\"><span class=\"mwd-subline\"><span  class=\"uc_style_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_subline\" style=\"color:#002943;\">Kickoff <\/span><\/span><h2><span  class=\"uc_style_headline_mit_trenner_elementor_headline\" style=\"color:#002943;\">Back on Track in the \"Year of Personal Responsibility\"<\/span><\/h2><\/div>\n\n  \n  \t\n<\/div>\n<!-- end \u00dcberschrift mit Trenner -->\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6c39379 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"6c39379\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_ha_eqh_enable&quot;:false}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3a5ab58 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3a5ab58\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_ha_eqh_enable&quot;:false}\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-064b9aa elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"064b9aa\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Alfons Horn, Chairman of the Management Board, and Michael Abersfelder, Chief Financial Officer, welcomed approximately 100 managers from the branches and head office at wego vti&#8217;s traditional kickoff at the end of January 2026 in Neuss.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c5a01bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c5a01bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In 2025, the company had declared the &#8216;Year of Discipline,&#8217; and the management&#8217;s assessment of the past year confirmed the validity of this motto. Michael Abersfelder: &#8220;We all approached the challenges ahead with discipline. Many of the topics from the previous year will remain with us in 2026, so we will continue to work with discipline on digital sales, the online shop, Project Pricing, and the private label topic.&#8221; Alfons Horn expressly thanked his management team: &#8220;Thank you for being reliable in this difficult year of 2025. However, 2026 will be another challenging year, and we trust that you will manage it with your teams and your locations. That is precisely why we have declared 2026 the &#8216;Year of Personal Responsibility&#8217;!&#8221;  <\/p><p><strong>Company Must Generate Profit<\/strong><\/p><p>In the past year, wego vti achieved a positive result with 52 locations and revenue of \u20ac524 million, representing a revenue decline of \u20ac13.9 million compared to 2024. The number of employees remained stable in this challenging environment, and training continued to be prioritized. <\/p><p>Alfons Horn: &#8220;Measured against the market, we performed well; measured against our own standards, we are behind!&#8221; While the adjusted targets for 2025 were achieved against a weak market, the company must perform significantly better this year, according to Horn. The Chairman of the Management Board posed &#8220;the question of purpose&#8221; to his managers and conducted a live survey to determine what those present saw as the purpose of the trading company. The three most frequently mentioned answers were &#8220;reliable service provider for our customers,&#8221; &#8220;generating profit,&#8221; and &#8220;secure employer.&#8221;   <\/p><p>Alfons Horn formulated a clear positioning from this and pointed out that financial strength is the foundation of all other goals: good customer service and secure jobs only if economically robust!<\/p><p><strong>Mega Location Kelsterbach<\/strong><\/p><p>Together, Alfons Horn and Michael Abersfelder looked back on an eventful 2025. The great success of the &#8220;Expert Trade Fair,&#8221; to which 1,500 customers and suppliers had contributed in Kelsterbach, was comprehensively acknowledged once again. The location near Frankfurt made headlines again several months later when the largest wego vti location in Germany by area and volume was established there. &#8220;This was the most extensive investment in every respect last year,&#8221; explained Michael Abersfelder, &#8220;additional funds went into the vti Ettlingen and vti Ludwigshafen locations.&#8221; Another seven-figure investment was represented by 25 newly delivered vehicles, a scale that wego vti also aims for in 2026 and the following years to continuously keep the logistics equipment up to date.    <\/p><p> <\/p><p><strong>Taking Personal Responsibility Literally<\/strong><\/p><p>During the two-day kickoff event, managers and management analyzed the situation of each individual branch in small groups with a careful review of 2025 and clearly formulated guidelines for the current year. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6bd21f5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"6bd21f5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_ha_eqh_enable&quot;:false}\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0e3de54 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0e3de54\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Alfons Horn: &#8220;The markets will hardly help us in 2026 either\u2014we must act even more entrepreneurially, seize opportunities, and embrace our personal responsibility.&#8221; In the discussions, the message became clear that we must speak and act with one voice. The company&#8217;s overall topics must be made into regional topics in the branches and implemented: &#8220;We are world champions in planning, but this year we must also become world champions in implementation\u2014the high professional competence in the company provides very good conditions for this.&#8221;  <\/p><p> <\/p><p><strong>Small Economic Bright Spot<\/strong><\/p><p>At least one bright spot on the horizon is provided by the economic outlook. The wego vti management still sees the construction sector in crisis, but the low point has now been reached, it was said. There is a slight trend in a positive direction for building completions, which are particularly relevant for the company. The path back to the previous market level is inevitable in the medium term; now it is simply a matter of holding on. The second half of this year should already run better, with the positive trend then intensifying in 2027, according to the economic forecast formulated in Neuss.    <\/p><p> <\/p><p><strong>Reducing Cost Ratio<\/strong><\/p><p>With extensive figures, Michael Abersfelder and Alfons Horn illustrated the central challenge for the company in the current situation: &#8220;The cost ratio is our greatest concern. We are seeing declining volume development for some central building materials in our range. At the same time, the inventory share is increasing, which helps the margin but exposes costs.&#8221;<\/p><p>This situation description forms the basis for this year&#8217;s objectives, which Alfons Horn reduced to a simple formula: &#8220;Increase sales, margin, and productivity\u2014reduce cost ratio!&#8221;<\/p><p>Generating profit is an elementary prerequisite for everything, including secure jobs, Horn made clear. &#8220;We must adapt better to volatile markets; this applies to the head office in Hanau as well as to the branches.&#8221; <\/p><p> <\/p><p><strong>&#8220;We Remain a People&#8217;s Business!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p><p>&#8220;Digitalization alone does not solve the problem. We must and will think more in terms of digital processes, but we generally remain a people&#8217;s business, meaning we will always operate with people in the market; they form the indispensable interface to our professional customers. Online and AI-supported processes will increasingly become the backbone of our digital presence, and our sales staff will be supported in an increasingly integrative human-machine manner.&#8221;<\/p><p>To achieve the targeted goals in the current year, wego vti is maintaining its investment course. With targeted personnel development and the expansion of our service offerings, we ensure that our customers are served even faster, more reliably, and more flexibly. The planned investment of \u20ac26 million in modern trucks, crane vehicles, and forklifts serves one primary goal: to noticeably improve delivery quality and service speed for our customers.  <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alfons Horn, Chairman of the Management Board, and Michael Abersfelder, Chief Financial Officer, welcomed approximately 100 managers from the branches and head office at wego vti&#8217;s traditional kickoff at the end of January 2026 in Neuss.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10220,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10219","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-unkategorisiert"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10219","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10219"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10219\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10221,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10219\/revisions\/10221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wego-vti.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}