Sometimes they are seen as visionary business leaders, other times as failures in pinstripes - the reputation of managers has its own kind of economic cycle. After tax scandals and espionage affairs, it has hit rock bottom with the financial crisis. Beyond the grasshopper frenzy and streamlined PR propaganda, however, no one really knows how the executives of Germany Inc. think: How nuanced is their view of their profession? How do they cope with the constant pressure? What mnemonic devices do they use to visualize 12-digit numbers? Barbara Nolte and Jan Heidtmann explore these questions in conversations they have had with top German managers. The result is a collection of candid testimonies that provide insight into the unknown life on the executive floor. The interviewees include: Frank Appel, Alexander Dibelius, Thomas Fischer, Hubertus von Grünberg, and Jü.