In addition to working as a project manager at the ZEISS Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology (SMT) segment, Markus Taglieber also performs volunteer work in crisis regions abroad with the Johanniter.

Natural disasters such as tsunamis or earthquakes usually hit without warning. When Markus Taglieber gets the call, he has to decide quickly whether or not to drop everything and venture out into a crisis region somewhere in the world. His unit's response time: just 48 hours.

The IT project manager in Oberkochen is one of the Johanniter's 100 volunteers for humanitarian work abroad. This charitable group certified by the World Health Organization (WHO) offers medical assistance. Taglieber is a trained paramedic, but for the Johanniter he works as a logistics expert or group leader out in the field. He coordinates medical care together with governmental authorities and organizes the setup and operation of mobile treatment stations.

On site, the primary task for everyone involved is to accept the particulars of the situation. His many years of experience working as a project manager at ZEISS certainly helps: “My work abroad is like project management. Here, you also plan – albeit on an entirely different level and with greater uncertainty.” Serious aid organizations only deploy when called upon to do so, i.e. only once the government of the country affected asks the United Nations for assistance. Then, these organizations report whether or not they are ready to help and who they could send. The government then decides who is permitted to come. Certified relief agencies have all pledged to follow WHO standards.

Collapsed homes, ruined lives, dead neighbors, parents and children – every catastrophe is different. Taglieber is impressed with people's composure in the face of such traumatic events. “Even when they've lost everything they own, there's one thing they almost never lose: their courage to press forward,” he says. “They share what little they have to eat and express their gratitude.

That really stays with you.” For his last two assignments – in Tunisia and Nepal – ZEISS gave Taglieber time off retroactively so that he didn't have to use up his vacation or overtime hours. “You figure out the details when you come back” he says. “The only thing that matters is that I can go at all.”