*4.3. Person-Based Power*

The interviews revealed that board members in particular have the greatest influence among individual persons because negotiations between stakeholder groups take place primarily in the board meetings. Consequently, individuals that hold office have a particular degree of influence on the communicative negotiation processes in GISCO. A key task is to mediate between the executive board and the stakeholder groups. This happens in two ways: Board members organize stakeholder group-internal meetings to develop their positions as group representatives on the executive board. This can be described as bottom-up. In particular, experts from member organizations in groups B and C emphasize the need to ensure that their board members are aware of their position, take it into account and, if necessary, bring it to the board meetings. At the same time, board members act as the first point of contact for their members, also in cases of dissatisfaction. The other direction in which board members mediate between the executive board and stakeholder groups can be described as top-down. This involves communicating with their groups before and after board meetings, sharing information, reporting on activities and, in some cases, soliciting approval for resolutions, discussing votes in advance and feeding decisions from the board meeting back into the respective internal stakeholder group meetings.

The chairperson of the executive board also exerts an influence on negotiations in GISCO. The chair's personal characteristics are described as neutral, balanced, consensusseeking, coordinating, calming and moderating. With these characteristics, the chairperson shapes the discussion as an individual and exemplifies a constructive form of interaction. At the same time, he also appears in other ways: In internal cooperation, the chairperson presides over board meetings and, together with a deputy, the WG 3: Sustainability. He is actively involved in resolving conflicts and, together with the deputies, acts as a contact person for the secretariat and the managing director, with whom the chairperson maintains an intensive dialogue. The chairperson of the executive board represents GISCO, together with the managing director, in international meetings and committees.

The heads of the three working groups, WG 1: Communication, WG 2: PRO-PLANTEURS and WG 3: Sustainability, work closely with the secretariat and are responsible for the preparation and follow-up of the meetings in terms of content and organization. It is clear from the interviews that the exercise of these offices is not automatically accompanied by a strong influence on the negotiations.

In addition to the people who hold offices in GISCO (board members, chairperson of the executive board, along with deputies, as well as heads of the WGs), other people also exert influence on negotiations. This became clear in the interviews when the interviewees were asked what distinguishes individuals whose word has a high weight in committee meetings or stakeholder groups. In general, the interviewees emphasize that all members formally have the same voting rights and that factors such as resource endowments of the organizations do not influence this. However, some respondents say that there are definitely individuals in the industry stakeholder group who are more active in discussions and are seen as leaders. Interestingly, three reasons crystallize in all stakeholder groups as to why the contributions of some individuals in committee meetings seem to attract more attention than those of others: first, their perceived competence; second, their personal appearance; and third, their conscientiousness and persistence in pursuing goals. These three characteristics are superficially independent of the respective offices held by the individuals. Nevertheless, it is likely that elected board members hold office and shape discussions based on their personalities, in addition to the presence of financial resources in their organizations that permit such honorary office. In contrast, holding office or being employed by the secretariat (such as the managing director or staff of the secretariat) are not mandatory prerequisites for being granted influence by other actors.

It becomes clear from the interviews that the interviewees are highly serious about their involvement in GISCO. Thus, they explain their strategies when participating, which interestingly correspond to the described characteristics of influential actors:

