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# TOPsharing – Empowerment for Leadership Positions

Executive job sharing isn't just a flexibility perk; it's a strategic advantage. Learn how Bosch's TOPsharing model uses paired leadership to boost productivity and prevent executive burnout.

- **Speakers:** Stefanie Kopka
- **Event:** WeAreDevelopers LIVE
- **Published:** March 13, 2024
- **Duration:** 51:56
- **URL:** https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/864-topsharing-empowerment-for-leadership-positions

## Summary

The transition to management remains a systemic hurdle for highly qualified professionals requiring part-time hours, particularly women balancing caregiving responsibilities. Addressing this barrier demands creative organizational design to combat talent attrition and effectively address skilled labor shortages. "TOPsharing" or executive job sharing emerges as a scalable, high-impact tool to engage high-potential professionals in leadership roles without demanding rigid full-time schedules. By pairing two managers to collaboratively guide a team, organizations can leverage complementary strengths and construct resilient, highly effective management structures. Demonstrating this model at Bosch, leaders Stephanie and Anna managed a diverse group of software developers not through "job splitting" (dividing the team or isolated tasks) but via shared top-level responsibility. This unified front necessitated an "ego-free zone" characterized by deep mutual trust, aligned core values, and highly transparent communication. Because standard HRIS tools are optimized for single managers, the duo creatively tracked their overlap using shared OneNote diaries, joint team boards, and focused sync meetings to limit communication friction and ensure constant strategic alignment. Implementing top sharing successfully reframes traditional FTE capacity planning. By presenting a combined 1.2 FTE layout, the shared leadership model delivered greater productivity, innovation, and continuous availability than a single manager could sustain. Distributing the intense cognitive load of management minimizes burnout and allows leaders to focus on valuable strategic and team development goals. Ultimately, the shared model proves that supported, well-balanced leaders make faster, higher-quality decisions and foster significantly greater satisfaction across their technical teams.

**Keywords:** top sharing, job sharing, part-time leadership, women in management, inclusive leadership, work-life integration, shared management, software development leadership, talent retention strategies, flexible working models, FTE capacity planning, co-leadership, organizational design, HRIS limitations, cognitive load management

## Chapters

1. **Integrating speaker background and company organizational structure** (00:02) — An overview of the engineering sector and the massive scale of the mobility workforce.
1. **Introducing job sharing as an empowerment tool for leaders** (03:21) — Top sharing provides an effective structure for managing software developers while accommodating individual needs.
1. **Analyzing current demographic data for management positions** (05:21) — Statistical workforce data shows a continuing imbalance in the ratio of female executives in corporations.
1. **Navigating part-time work realities and caregiving constraints** (08:33) — Caregiving responsibilities heavily influence the high prevalence of part-time roles among highly qualified engineering talent.
1. **Returning from parental leave and facing leadership stress** (11:10) — Assuming a sole management position during a resource shortage highlights the severe pressure placed on part-time parents.
1. **Combining individual strengths into a shared leadership tandem** (16:06) — Pairing distinct capabilities within a single managerial position reduces stress and vastly improves decision quality.
1. **Core principles for establishing a successful top sharing model** (21:04) — A collaborative leadership role requires an ego-free zone and mutual respect for contrasting management styles.
1. **Adopting practical tools and workflows for daily coordination** (27:51) — Asynchronous documentation platforms ensure seamless transitions and reduce the need for constant verbal synchronization.
1. **Aligning organizational capacity planning and realizing company benefits** (32:26) — Creative full-time equivalent calculations allow companies to retain talent while gaining highly responsive and stable leadership.
1. **Comparing shared leadership responsibilities with strict job splitting** (39:18) — Interactive questions reveal the functional differences between fully shared management and separated departmental duties.
1. **Evaluating soft skills and value alignment for leadership partnerships** (44:33) — Strong self-reflection and aligned cultural attitudes are essential prerequisites for maintaining a unified management front.

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