25 years of next level – insights and outlook: Wolfgang Rabl on 25 years of success and change
20. January 2025
To mark the 25th anniversary of next level consulting, we asked CEO Wolfgang Rabl to talk to us. Interview sequences, background reports and info boxes provide a comprehensive overview of next level's milestones and challenges. In addition to a look back at the company's early days, the focus is on topics such as complexity management, innovation culture and interpersonal factors. Be inspired by groundbreaking insights for practical application!
Interview by Thomas Weidinger
next level consulting celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025 – an impressive milestone that we take as an opportunity to give you exciting insights into the founding years and a trend-setting outlook for the future. We let CEO and co-founder Wolfgang Rabl himself have his say, who not only provides surprising insights into the beginnings and philosophy of next level in an open and inspiring conversation, but also shares valuable learnings and takeaways for the business world with us.
His conclusion to our conversation: "Very intense and in a very good atmosphere." It was precisely this setting that allowed us to explore the origins of his entrepreneurial vision as well as the values that drive him – from a clear business focus to deep philanthropy and a seemingly limitless commitment. Let us inspire you!
Hello Wolfi, that's what everyone at next level calls you and even some of your customers. Do you still remember the very first seminar you led?
Yes, I can still remember it very well. That was a defining moment for me – the day I knew that I wanted to become a consultant. At the time, I was an assistant at WU Vienna and was asked to give a training course on MS Project. I had worked intensively on project management tools in my dissertation, a topic that hardly anyone was familiar with at the time.
That was in 1988 or 1989, I was 23 years old. I was paid 10,000 schillings for this seminar – a considerable sum for one day. But the money was one thing. I organised the day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. with the participants because I was well prepared and it was important to me to meet the high expectations. It was clear to me that anyone who invests so much money deserves above-average commitment. And then came the super positive feedback from the participants that they would start implementing it tomorrow – I was totally happy. That was my first day of training, and it laid the foundation for my future path.
Wolfgang Rabl, born in 1966, is dedicated to his work, his drive doesn't come from the outside, but from deep within – from his brain, from his gut and with a lot of passion: "If I wasn't a CEO and consultant, I would have become a street worker or a educator. The main thing is to work with people." All of his topics and questions revolve around people, social systems and how to set up organisations well and support these structures.
He describes his two roles or ‘two worlds’ at next level consulting as follows: "As CEO, I see my job as ensuring that our employees, managers and partners are doing well – because if the people in the company are doing well, the economy is doing well too. This applies to us just as much as it does to the organisations we work with. And as a consultant, I am primarily involved in transformation and change projects as well as strategy development. My focus is on how organisations strategically align their project portfolios. At the same time, I work intensively on training and organisational development – that's our core business."
Takeaway #1:
Ensuring sustainable success
According to Wolfgang Rabl, the following things contribute to sustainable business success in combination with happier people:
- Sharing knowledge. "Sharing is caring" – that is our guiding principle. Knowledge is often not shared enough in companies, even though it is crucial. I always say: if next level knew what next level knows, we would already be much further ahead. This applies not only to us, but to almost every company.
- Servant leadership. For me, leadership means: "You are not there for me, I am there for you." As a manager or consultant, I make sure that people can work and develop. This principle not only creates more efficient teams, but also better cooperation.
- Be free from envy. Envy of success, power or positions is poison – for people, for social structures, for cooperation. This is not a moralistic phrase, but a clear message: envy prevents development and strains relationships.
- Create meaning. Especially in our profession, which is strongly profit-orientated, money is of course an important factor and motivator. But the real reward comes with the experience of having achieved something meaningful. People want to feel that their work has made a difference.
What does the 25th anniversary mean to you personally?
For me, it is confirmation that we have done more right than wrong over the last 25 years. The market in which we operate is highly competitive, and I see this consistency – especially on the scale in which we operate – as a great success story. What I find particularly remarkable is how our focus has changed: 20 years ago, the basics of project management were enough to be successful. Today, we are measured by how innovative and strategic we are – and we have achieved this.
And what about next level itself? What are you most proud of?
Above all, the fact that we not only set high standards for our customers, but also internally – especially in terms of personnel development. Our employees have real opportunities with us to develop and reach management positions, often outside of next level consulting. This leads to a positive rebound effect: many former employees who are now in management positions remain closely associated with us.
What is the success of 25 years of next level based on?
Our success is based on three central pillars: Business Development - the strategic direction of our company. Product Development - our innovative strength and the systematic development of new offerings by our Group Product Management. Human Resource Development - the upskilling of our employees and the continuous development of our team.
The balance between these three areas is crucial. I see maintaining this balance as one of my main tasks – together with our management team.
Milestones, setbacks & lessons learnt in the start-up phase
Wolfgang Rabl emphasises the importance of the relationship with customers in the start-up phase. Back then, next level worked intensively with a large German corporation and several Austrian companies: "It was an almost familial collaboration that would be hard to imagine in this form today. Back then, however, it laid the foundation for success in the first five to ten years," says Rabl.
The first major milestone was the division into four limited companies (Vienna, Graz, Salzburg and Germany) in 2002. Six partners and a secretary were each able to take responsibility for their own company – a strong multiplier effect that promoted local customer relationships and regional teams.
The second important step followed when it became clear that regional egoisms were slowing down growth. A holding company was therefore founded, in which central areas such as sales, IT and accounting were bundled. At the same time, management was reduced to business unit managers and business development. By 2008/2009, the individual Austrian companies had been dissolved and merged into an Austrian limited company, supplemented by the holding company as a central service and support structure. This created the organisation that still exists today.
Between 2008 and 2012, next level experienced a decisive turning point when all partners gradually left the company. This showed how polarising people with a lot of energy and drive can be: "On the one hand, they bring a hugely positive dynamic to the company, but on the other, their strong personality can also have a negative impact. Once this side dominates, the end of the collaboration is often pre-programmed," says Rabl.
A key learning was that it is essential to tackle new topics. next level started purely in project management. However, it was soon realised that process management was also part of it – after all, every project automatically affects processes. Building on this, change management was an obvious choice because changes are often not accompanied professionally. Rabl gives a typical example: "You develop a great IT solution, but without acceptance it remains unused. This is where professional change management comes in."
"If I were to found next level again today, the focus would not be on project management and process management, but rather on the question: How do we manage complexity and dynamics?" says Wolfgang Rabl
The crux of the matter: managing complexity and dynamics
In your opinion, how have the fields of project management, process management and change management changed?
In my view, it is no longer about the pure technology of these disciplines, but about the management of complexity and dynamics. If I were to found next level again today, the focus would not be on ‘project management and process management’, but on the question: How do we manage complexity and dynamics?
And how do we manage complexity and dynamism?
The central challenge is to quickly establish temporary organisational and decision-making structures. This does not involve traditional tools such as bar charts or risk analyses, but rather the formation of coalitions and the establishment of fast-acting speedboats – often across company boundaries.
But you have to lead and accompany people there first, don't you?
I have a rather negative view of people and organisations: change only comes about when the pressure from suffering is high enough. We see this in everyday life, for example, when it comes to health: people rarely change their behaviour without clear warning signals. Applied to companies, this means that we often have to wait for a ‘window of opportunity’ – the moment when a real problem is recognised and change becomes unavoidable.
How do you deal with this, both internally and on the customer side?
You watch until such a window opens. If a project fails and management becomes aware of the problem, you can intervene in a targeted manner, carry out an audit and bring the issue back to management. Without an open window, the best solution is useless – but when the window opens, you should be ready to walk through it.
Awareness is needed to wait for the window to open and, above all, to recognise when the window is open. How do you create awareness?
By listening and reflecting. You have to think about the structural reflection loops early on. At next level consulting, we therefore conduct three employee appraisals a year instead of just one. It's not about controlling targets – the keyword here is ‘order and command’, which no longer works today. The key is to listen to people, because I am convinced that they have something to say. And through genuine listening, an awareness of the need for change is created and you recognise the open window and can then go through it in a targeted manner – or at least try to.
Takeaway #2:
Typical client challenges – and how to overcome them
- Scarcity of resources. Many companies are currently experiencing a major shortage of skilled labour and resources. This is particularly evident in sectors such as healthcare, where staff shortages can sometimes lead to surgical units coming to a standstill: The search for nurses is becoming so urgent that other projects are often put on hold in order to safeguard the core business. The situation is similar in the IT sector, where applications and the pressure to digitalise are at full capacity and technical infrastructure and databases are often overloaded.
- The dilemma between speed and capacity: The examples illustrate a central paradox: The IT sector is struggling with constantly increasing demands and overloaded infrastructures due to the pressure of digitalisation. The speed at which innovations are required collides with limited resources and capacities.
- Uncertain framework conditions. Added to this is an uncertain global situation – from political crises to unpredictable developments such as sharply rising construction costs, which affect a current client of next level consulting: From previously 2 - 3 per cent to 20 per cent: supply bottlenecks and financial risks are jeopardising important projects.
- Solution approach: From ‘patent remedy’ to ‘solution space’. A key success factor is the ability to manage complexity and dynamics. It is not about providing patent remedies, but about creating a solution space together with clients in which interventions and measures can be developed in a meaningful way.
- Establish iterative processes. Instead of simply providing recommendations for action, it is more effective to establish iterative processes and continuously adapt them together. This creates the necessary flexibility to remain capable of acting in the long term despite limited resources and constantly new challenges.
Structure meets agility: quick solutions in complex times
How do you personally deal with complexity and constant change? And how do you communicate these skills to the team – your own and that of the customer?
In portfolio management, we deliberately focus on shorter, regular cycles instead of rigid five-year plans. An algorithmic prioritisation takes place every two to three months, in which strategic relevance and feasibility are assessed according to a points system. In a first step, a technical categorisation is carried out, after which the management decides whether a project is ‘fixed’, ‘optional’ or ‘stopped’. This categorisation is constantly reviewed and adjusted so that we can react flexibly and quickly to changes. In our experience, clients really appreciate this mix of structure and agility – for us, it's a good example of what modern project portfolio management can look like.
How do you ensure that next level consulting always offers clients practical solutions? Have you always been driven by innovation or is it a question of corporate culture?
Both. I myself am more of a sales person, someone who likes to sell and cultivate clients relationships. But we have around 100 employees at next level consulting and 18 people on the Extended Management Board. Some of them are passionate about innovation and develop new ideas and services in Group Product Management. This structure reflects our culture: we combine the innovative spirit of specialists with a strong focus on sales and customer benefits. This is precisely what gives rise to the practical solutions that our clients value.
"Artificial intelligence will fundamentally change project management in the next five years," says Wolfgang Rabl
Project management at a turning point – AI as a game changer
When asked what trends and developments can be expected in project management over the next five years, Wolfgang Rabl's face becomes animated: "Now we've reached the topic I've been working on intensively for the past two months." If Rabl has his way, artificial intelligence (AI) will fundamentally change the nature of project management in the next five years! Initial applications already show that tools such as ChatGPT can create entire use cases and discuss them with virtual avatars – from top managers to IT nerds. This results in concrete project goals and processes in a very short space of time.
However, human expertise remains indispensable, as professional input – keyword ‘prompt engineering’ – is required. Experienced consultants or coaches then review the automatically generated proposals and contribute their expertise. At next level consulting, a chatbot will soon be answering basic questions about project management and providing recommendations for action – this is how AI works together with the project team to find solutions. However, humans remain the decisive factor in correctly evaluating the results and adapting them if necessary.
"Fear of this development is unnecessary," says Wolfgang Rabl, "instead, we need curiosity and a willingness to learn new skills such as how to use AI applications. At next level, we are making targeted investments in research and implementation so that we will soon be able to offer our clients training on how to optimise AI models. Because this knowledge should become part of the standard repertoire in project management as soon as possible!"
Analogue togetherness in the digital age
Last question: I personally love listening to music from a record player. I mention this because Netflix is replacing videos, Spotify is making CDs obsolete – and yet there is the phenomenon that sales of records and record players are booming. Where is there such an anachronistic, valuable ‘record player effect’ at next level?
I see a ‘record player effect’, if you like, in personal encounters. One example of this is the X-Days at next level: three days in the summer that are designed partly as a strategy retreat and partly as a relaxed social event. Despite the content-related work, they feel like a communal celebration and strengthen team cohesion.
In addition to traditional workshops, we also use informal formats such as the ‘Business Walk’. After lunch, the team picks up on a central topic and discusses it on a walk together. Without flipcharts and post-its, this creates an intensive exchange that many find extremely productive – and which emphasises the human element.
Takeaway #3:
Teaming in real (shared) time
- promotes the interpersonal level. Particularly in phases of rapid change, greater attention should therefore be paid to this.
- sharpens the awareness of conflicting goals. This makes it easier to manage different interests.
- breaks down interpersonal barriers. Collaboration requires more than technology.
"It is usually not technical problems but interpersonal hurdles that cause a project to fail," says Wolfgang Rabl. "Conflicts of interest and power games can only be brought under control by asking the question of 'we' from a larger perspective. That is why at next level consulting we consistently rely on teamwork and cooperation in order to resolve conflicts and achieve sustainable results."
Thank you for the interview!