Q&A with Jana Ingendahl: Making Businesses Sustainable [Consultancy]

Miša Hennin

Hello, and welcome to the July edition of our Use Case Q&A series!

In this series, we'll share real-life examples of how people use Meister products in a variety of industries - You'll find inspiration, tips and creative new ways to use our tools.

Today, we’re speaking with @Jana Ingendahl: co-founder of a sustainability consulting firm using data analytics to help businesses make a greener choice.

Ready to find out how MeisterTask helps Jana manage everything from strategy to analytics and consulting? Read on!

Got your own use case you'd love to share? Reach out to @Andrew Lapidus or @Miša!

Q&A with Jana Ingendahl: Making Business Sustainable Using Data

Hey Jana, thanks for being here! Please could you tell us a little about yourself and what you do?

Thank you for having me!

My professional role is best encapsulated by the term sustainability consultant: When my business partner and I first founded Ingdilligenz, we aimed to apply analytics to sustainability. We had realized that due to regulatory requirements and uncertainty regarding ESG (environmental, social and governance) topics, there was little data of sufficient quality available for companies to make informed decisions. We wanted to change this and help small enterprises integrate sustainability into their business in a meaningful way.

My tasks are both strategic and operational: Materiality assessment, development of actions and strategies, preparation of sustainability reporting and KPIs etc... my work is incredibly interesting and diverse!

Could you describe your path to working in data-driven sustainability? It's certainly an increasingly important field.

My path to data-driven sustainability was really quite simple. It involved the combining of two things: My passion and my skills.

My passion for sustainability came from my parents - At home, we were taught that cars should only be for emergency use and that we should use bikes for everyday life. My mother also bought only regional and organic food, explaining the impact of consumer choice on the planet. So, since childhood, I've had a sensitivity to sustainability issues 🌎. Later, I spent some time in the north of Sweden. There, I felt like I really understood the consequences of climate change for the first time. I met a lot of amazing people, all fighting against the rapidly changing climate, the decreasing population of local animals and the resulting impact on the ecosystem. I realized then that I wanted to use all of my knowledge and skills to preserve our natural environment.

In terms of skills, I've always had an affinity for numbers and logic, and so began my career in the financial sector (which is a very interesting field for sustainability!). From working in finance, I learned that it's crucial to measure what you want to manage. This realization came at the perfect time - Companies were just starting to get comfortable with analytics tools and data-driven decision-making.

So I combined my skills (data) and my passion (sustainability): I leveraged the growing openness to analytics in order to drive responsible business. The very tools that make agile and data-driven companies faster and more efficient can also make them more sustainable!

Speaking of tools, could you tell us how you first came across MeisterTask and MindMeister?

When I started my first job as a Data Manager in finance, my boss was trying to transform the company into an agile and collaborative one. Our team trialed MeisterTask and gradually onboarded more people across different departments. To the best of my knowledge, both MeisterTask and MindMeister are still used extensively today - Cheers to you @kraefti!

Glad to hear MeisterTask made such an impression! Why did you choose it over other productivity tools?

The biggest advantage of Meister has always been its data protection and security - The fact that all data is stored in Europe and data centers are ISO-certified is invaluable.

I also love the interoperability of MeisterTask and MindMeister. For example, when I have to work my way through new requirements in a short time frame, I can put everything into a mind map, restructure it to get the whole picture, and then define the different tasks and milestones to start making progress in MeisterTask.

With strategy, data & analytics, consultancy and management, your role is multifaceted, to say the least - How do you use MeisterTask to support you?

My day begins and ends with MeisterTask - The tool is my central point of orientation. As a team, we organize everything in MeisterTask: We plan our office times, prepare the marketing strategy and track the sales pipeline. I also have a separate personal project for organizing various workshops or any meetings that aren't to do with Ingdilligenz. As multifaceted as my role is, I can always manage it with MeisterTask.

We'd love to see one of your project boards. Could you show us an example?

Sure, I’ll show you how we set up our small marketing team: We have one weekly meeting where we discuss upcoming content, topics to be organized, or our next team event. (In August, we're combining wine tasting with working on our vision, mission and team building…🤩). Our team has really strong communication practices, so we only need a few columns for tasks and use the rest of the project for storing ideas and content.

As a busy business founder, which automation simplifies your life?

I use the recurring task and send email for scheduled tasks automations to make organizing travel expenses, meetings and social media content etc. easier. I set these up so that towards the end of each month, multiple recurring tasks appear automatically in my working column, along with a corresponding due date for invoicing. I receive an email reminding me to schedule the task for the next couple of days. If I don't complete the task before the date, I receive another email reminder on the due date.

When I have to manage multiple projects and internal processes within a single week, receiving a daily email with all due tasks is a lifesaver 😉.

Thanks for the automation inspiration 😄 - Do you also use integrations?

I have to admit that we don’t use any integrations at the moment! I know
that there are many available - I tried some of them in my last job, but due to sensitive customer data, we never had any fixed integration in place. Maybe this is a great chance to ask the community: What is your experience with the different integrations, and which do you recommend and why?

You also mentioned MindMeister in the Community - Do you have a mind map template you can share?

I would love to share this “small” sustainability landscape. I use it to explain
the different regulatory requirements to customers or colleagues using presentation mode. As there are multiple interactions between different frameworks, I created a high-level overview illustrating the “big picture” from the EU perspective. Please feel free to use it for your own sustainability journey ☺️.

Finally, do you have any other resources you'd like to share with the Community?

Of course, I would love to share something regarding sustainability 🌎. For those of you who like a challenge, I really recommend the Financial Times climate game. It will help you understand the complexity of sustainability and the goal of reaching net zero by 2050. Let me know what you think in the comments.

For MindMeister and MeisterTask, I encourage everyone to just play around! The key to great workflows is to get comfortable with the tools - Once you understand the features, you can optimize them in the most efficient way for your own use case.

Thank you for your time, Jana - I've loved learning more about sustainability and hearing about how you use MeisterTask. How can users reach out to you for more information?

Thanks a lot! Please feel free to contact me within this community or
via LinkedIn. I am always happy to share my knowledge and would love to get
insights on your perspectives!

Jana Ingendahl

Thank you @Miša for this opportunity!💚

Cathy Fanning

Hi @Jana Ingendahl and @Misa Excellent article! Wonderful background and history on the business and how you got going. Great working examples of MeisterTask and MindMeister. Very inspiring!

Andrew Lapidus

Thanks so much for the post @Miša Hennin and @Jana Ingendahl! 🙌 Reading this, I was reminded of the chat during Liis' AMA: Absolutely in agreement that sustainability should not be an afterthought in business but a fundamental pillar. Your work is a fantastic example of how companies can integrate these practices into their strategic decision-making, all while leveraging the power of data analytics.

Also love how you described your journey into sustainability — great to see how personal experiences and values can fuel a meaningful career!

I just checked out the game from the Financial Times as well. Great way to introduce some of the more technical concepts to the uninitiated like myself, and also to explore where our own biases lie (e.g. in my case, expecting some sort of miracle technological advancement). Thanks so much for sharing!

Sebastian Kraft

nice one @Jana Ingendahl 💪🏼🤙

Joerg Koper

Hi @Jana Ingendahl and @Miša Hennin 👋🙂

Thanks a lot for this impressing interview. You have my fullest respect, Jana. And I couldn't agree more with the words of @Andrew Lapidus 👏

I like the mind map and the structure, you described of your team and work-flows. As far as I can see, we also share the love for hiking in nature. Would be great to connect at LinkedIn for further contact in the future.

Best, Jörg