Wolff reveals remarkable first job at Mercedes: 'Clean toilets'

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has revealed what his first job was when he joined the Formula One team in 2013. It is probably not the first thing that would come to anyone's mind: his first official act for the team was making sure the toilet was clean.

Wolff pays attention to the smallest details, according to his revelation published in Harvard Business Review. When he first visited the Mercedes factory in Brackley, he noticed clutter on the table in the lobby. At his first interview, he commented that the reception area did not say 'Formula 1' and that that was the first thing that needed to change.

He also applied that approach when he first visited the toilet in the team's hospitality area during races. "It was dirty, and I thought: that cannot be. This is our home on a race weekend and where our sponsors come with their families," Wolff said.

To remedy the situation, Wolff hired a full-time hygiene manager, who now travels with the team. The team boss demonstrated in minute detail exactly how to clean the toilet, even making sure the soap bottles were facing the right way.

This somewhat obsessive approach permeated every aspect of the organisation. "Everything is spotless and organized. I think that affects how we look after the cars too. We’re meticulous," Wolff said.

To what extent this approach actually contributed to Mercedes' success is difficult to establish, but Helmut Marko has an amusing response when F1-Insider.com asking him if Red Bull Racing has the same mentality: "Sometimes it is enough to have a Max Verstappen who makes a difference," he says with a wink.