Meet a Spreader - Mirko Bröcker

Mirko has made it. Like millions of Europeans before him, he has gone to America in search of freedom, money and indepedence from German food. And also to help Spreadshirt US develop and manage accounting, finances and controlling, HR, internal IT and legal. Read what he thinks of his new job, cultural differences - and similarities.

Where were you born and raised?
1976, in Schwerin, North Germany. I am a Northerner by heart, you know.

What is your education?
In brief: childhood in beautiful Schwerin, think of lakes and woodlands. Schooling at a Rostock boarding school with a science and maths focus. Further training at a Trade school, Master in industrial engineering at University of Rostock. Student’s year abroad in Lapland, Sweden. Then job in a Medtech company while pursuing my MBA at Leipzig‘s HHL. The company went bankrupt, was taken over by a large corporation, resulting in lots of bureaucracy and little fun>enter Spreadshirt!

A flawless resume. What is your connection with your homelands today?
Home? Is that not the place where you live and feel at home? I have a shirt that I like to call my hometown shirt. In front, it says Boston, on the back, it says Rostock. That neatly sums it up. I see Boston as my new home, and Rostock my former home. Those two sit together nicely on one and the same shirt. I like both places.

When did you join Spreadshirt and what are you doing at the moment?
I started in November 2005. At that time, I was hired as Controller-in-chief. That’s what David does today. I soon found out, however, that without accounting (Spreadshirt didn’t have an accountant at the time) controlling is a hard task indeed. So I had to start from scratch, doing various finance-related tasks including payroll, taxes etc. As Spreadshirt grew specialists were hired for all of these fields, leaving me with accounting. Not really my favorite task, to be honest. Just then, Jana made me that fabulous offer to start over again. I was to develop and build the same departments for U.S. which I had previously built up successfully in Germany. My responsibilities now include HR, IT, Finances, Controlling, Legal and Administration and I am supported by really tremendous teams in both Greensburg and Boston. I like the diversity of my tasks and the challenge to create new structures and workflows. Reporting to both Jana and Andreas, I still have a lot of leeway to act.

What are the differences between Spreadshirt US and Spreadshirt Germany?
The differences are bigger than you might think. Over here in the US there is often a more hands-on and DIY approach instead of delegating tasks to an assistant, similar to Leipzig two years ago. But I like this approach as I can utilize my varied skills and experience. On the other hand, the average age at Spreadshirt US is much higher. More people have kids and thus more life-experience. As a guess, I would say the age difference is around 10 years between my team now and my former team in Leipzig. Another thing which one soon realizes are cultural differences (what surprise). I am still exploring those, and I have sure made some blunders already. Thanks to my helpful team, I am learning fast as they teach me: ‘Mirko, that’s not the way how it would work here.’

What do you like about the American way of life, what is hard to digest?
I love the American attitude – be it life or business. Many things are much more uncomplicated. People just do it, instead of debating and planning all the time. Whereas German managers still discuss the longterm strategic plan, Americans have already acquired their first customers and made their first sales. What I find alarming, on the other hand, is the apparent lack of concern about increasing surveillance and the loss of constitutional rights. America has a unique tradition of liberty and independence, but it just does not seem to bother people too much. I would like Americans to have a more critical attitude towards these changes.

(view from Boston office)
What American food do you like best? What do you not like at all?
8 oz. Tenderloin, medium-rare… Do I have to say more? American Steaks rock. And icecream, especially Häagen-Dazs and Ben & Jerrys. What I don’t like at all is High Fructose Corn Syrup. That’s an ingredient to almost every food item here, and it is the epitome of processed food.

What does your tyical work day look like?
Rising early, 6 am, hitting the road at 6:30. When you are late, you are in for some nasty traffic jams. Breakfast at the office, time to scan online news from Europe and US. Then the workday starts in earnest. Due to the time difference, it makes sense to deal with all issues related to Europe before you guys wake up. I usually leave the office at 6, no sense hitting crammed roads before that time. I spend my evenings with diverse activities, including watching basketball games. BTW ‘we are the champions’ The Boston Celtics have beaten the LA Lakers winning in a spectacular game and won their 17th championship in NBA history)

What are your hobbies?
When I have time, I like to travel. I am curious by nature about other countries and places. My main interest is finding out about diverse lifestyles, architecture and regional food too. I usually try to avoid  typical tourist destinations. Up to now, I have been to approximately 15 countries on three continents, and there is a lot left to do. Here are some insider tips :

• Skuleskogen Nationalpark in the North of Sweden. Grand views and almost no people there
• the beaches at Tsitsikamma Nationalpark in South Africa – miles of fine grained sand, azure waters, green mountainous woodlands as a backdrop, a nature lovers’ dream!

If you had to be an animal, which one would you choose?
I like moose. They are pretty impressive, don’t have natural enemies and can eat tons of fermented fruit unmolested by police

Your favorite music?
At the moment - Morcheeba’s ‘Enjoy the Ride’ – just right to drive home by

Who will be the next president of the United States?
Obama without a doubt. He is a great orator and knows how to inspire hope. Mc Cain has some likeable sides too. On the whole, however, Obama should make it by a big margin. Change is in the air, the mood is similar to that of Germany in 1998.

Thank you Mirko! Who shall be next?
Emmanuel Levy

Boston office