DAX 40 Management Board & Supervisory Board Moves

Q1 2025

Management Board Moves

BMW AG

  • BMW AG has announced that Dr. Joachim Post will succeed Frank Weber as Member of the Board of Management responsible for Development, effective June 1, 2025. Post’s current role as Board Member responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network will be assumed by Dr. Nicolai Martin, current Head of Product Line Luxury Class BMW, Rolls-Royce, who will join the Management Board on the same date. Weber concludes his five-year tenure on the Board of Management, following the successful completion of series development for ‘Neue Klasse’.

Brenntag SE

  • Following the announcement in October 2024 of Dr. Kristin Neumann's departure, Brenntag SE has confirmed the appointment of Thomas Reisten as Chief Financial Officer and member of the Board of Management, effective April 1, 2025. Reisten, who most recently served as Chief Financial Officer at Vantage Towers, was pivotal in the company’s carve-out from the Vodafone Group and its subsequent IPO. At Brenntag, he will assume responsibility for accounting, controlling, investor relations, legal, shared services, taxes, treasury, and insurance. His contract runs until March 31, 2028.

Commerzbank AG

  • Effective February 1, 2025, Carsten Schmitt officially assumed the role as Chief Financial Officer at Commerzbank AG, succeeding Dr. Bettina Orlopp, who held the position since March 2020 and continued concurrently with her appointment as Chief Executive Officer on October 1, 2024. Schmitt joins Commerzbank from Danske Bank, where he was responsible for Group Strategy and M&A, he previously held various roles at Commerzbank over a span of more than 20 years, most recently as Divisional Board Member overseeing Group Finance from 2019 to 2021.

Deutsche Bank AG

  • Deutsche Bank has announced James von Moltke will step down as Chief Financial Officer in June 2026, after eight years in the role. He will be succeeded by Raja Akram, who joins the Bank on October 1, 2025, and becomes a Management Board member on January 1, 2026. Akram currently serves as Deputy Chief Financial Officer at Morgan Stanley and will be relocating to Frankfurt. 

  • Effective May 1, 2025, Fabrizio Campelli will assume regional responsibility for the Americas, succeeding Stefan Simon, who is departing the bank due to personal reasons. Campelli, a current member of the Management Board, presently oversees the Corporate Bank and Investment Bank divisions.

Deutsche Telekom AG

  • Rodrigo Diehl has joined the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG as Spokesman for the Board of Management of Telekom Deutschland GmbH, effective March 1, 2025. Diehl, formerly Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Telekom’s Austrian subsidiary, succeeds Srinivasan (Srini) Gopalan, who has transitioned to the role of Chief Operating Officer at T-Mobile US.

Hannover Re SE

  • Jean-Jacques Henchoz, Chief Executive Officer of Hannover Re SE, concluded his tenure on the Board of Management on March 31, 2025. Clemens Jungsthöfel, the current Chief Financial Officer, succeeds him as Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2025.

  • Jungsthöfel will be succeeded by Dr. Christian Hermelingmeier, Chief Financial Officer at HDI Global and Chair of the Board of Directors of HDI Reinsurance Ireland SE, effective April 1, 2025.

Mercedes-Benz Group AG

  • Mathias Geisen, previously Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans, has been appointed to the Management Board of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, succeeding Britta Seeger as Board Member for Marketing & Sales, effective March 1, 2025.

  • Britta Seeger succeeded Sabine Kohleisen as Board Member for Human Relations and Labour Director, effective March 1, 2025. Kohleisen has requested that the Supervisory Board of Mercedes-Benz Group AG not extend her contract, which expires at the end of November 2025.

  • Effective February 1, 2025, Oliver Thöne, formerly Head of Product Strategy and Steering, has been appointed to the Management Board, succeeding Hubertus Troska as Board Member for Greater China. Troska, who plans to retire in 2025, has taken on a new role as Board Member and General Authorised Representative of Mercedes-Benz Group AG for China, effective February 1, 2025.

Merck KGAA

  • Khadija Ben Hammada, Merck KGAA’s Chief Human Resources Officer, has joined the Executive Board in a newly created role as Chief People Officer, effective March 1, 2025.

  • It has been announced that Jean-Charles Wirth and Danny Bar-Zohar will join the Executive Board of Merck KGAA, effective June 1, 2025. Wirth, currently heading Science & Lab Solutions within Merck’s Life Science business sector, will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer, Life Science, succeeding Dr. Matthias Heinzel, who has opted not to renew his contract. Bar-Zohar, currently Global Head of Research & Development and Chief Medical Officer of the Healthcare business sector, will become Chief Executive Officer, Healthcare, succeeding Peter Guenter, who has decided to retire after nearly 40 years in the pharmaceutical industry.

MTU Aero Engines AG

  • Katja Garcia Vila has been appointed to the Executive Board of MTU Aero Engines AG as Chief Financial Officer Designate, effective April 1, 2025. She will succeed Peter Kameritsch, officially taking over the role on July 1, 2025, following a transition period. Garcia Vila previously served as Chief Financial Officer at Continental AG.

Porsche AG

  • Effective February 26, 2025, Dr. Jochen Breckner, formerly Head of the General Secretariat and Corporate Development, and Matthias Becker, Head of the Overseas and Emerging Markets region, have been appointed to the Porsche AG Executive Board. Breckner succeeded Lutz Meschke as Board Member for Finance and IT, while Becker succeeded Detlev von Platen as Board Member for Sales and Marketing.

Rheinmetall AG

  • Effective January 1, 2025, Klaus Neumann was appointed Chief Financial Officer and a member of the Executive Board of Rheinmetall AG, succeeding Dagmar Steinert. Neumann, who has been with the company for 12 years, previously served as Head of Accounting.

  • René Gansauge, formerly Head of the Weapon and Ammunition Division, was also appointed to the Executive Board effective January 1, 2025, assuming the newly established role of Chief Operations Officer.

SAP SE

  • Sebastian Steinhaeuser has been appointed to the SAP SE Executive Board as Chief Operating Officer, effective February 1, 2025. He will oversee the newly established Strategy & Operations division, continuing to drive SAP's strategy implementation and operational efficiency. Previously, Steinhaeuser held several roles at SAP SE, including Chief Strategy Officer, where he managed the company’s growth areas; Business Transformation Management, Business Network, and Sustainability.

Zalando SE

  • Chief Financial Officer, Dr. Sandra Dembeck, stepped down from the Management Board of Zalando SE at the end of February 2025 to assume the role of Chief Financial Officer at Tengelmann Twenty-One. Co-Chief Executive Officer, David Schröder, has taken over her responsibilities and is serving as interim Chief Financial Officer until a successor is appointed.

This paper reflects movements across DAX40 Supervisory Boards and Management Boards that have occurred or been announced within Q1 2025.

 


 

Contact

Jens-Thomas Pietralla
Russell Reynolds Associates
Neuturmstraße 5 | 80331 Munich | Germany
Direct: +49-89-2489-8151
jt.pietralla@russellreynolds.com

Supervisory Board Moves

Airbus SE

  • Airbus SE has nominated Dr. Doris Höpke as a Non-Executive Board Member, succeeding Claudia Nemat, who will step down at the Annual General Meeting on April 15, 2025. Dr. Höpke currently serves on the Supervisory Board of Mercedes-Benz Group AG and previously sat on the Board of Management at Munich Re.

Allianz SE

  • Allianz SE has announced that Dr. Friedrich Eichiner will step down as Supervisory Board Member and Audit Committee Chair at the Annual General Meeting on May 8, 2025, upon reaching the age limit of 70. The Supervisory Board will nominate Prof. Dr. Ralf Peter Thomas, Chief Financial Officer of Siemens AG, as his successor. Dr. Thomas also chairs the Supervisory Board of Siemens Healthineers AG and serves on Allianz SE’s German property insurance subsidiary board. His contract at Siemens runs through 2026.

Deutsche Bank AG

  • Deutsche Bank AG is set to propose Kirsty Roth, Chief Operations & Technology Officer at Thomson Reuters, and Klaus Moosmayer, member of the Executive Committee and Chief Ethics, Risk & Compliance Officer at Novartis AG (until April 14, 2025), for election at the Annual General Meeting on May 22, 2025. They are nominated to succeed Theodor Weimer and Dagmar Valcarcel, whose terms will expire at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting.

Deutsche Telekom AG

  • Deutsche Telekom AG has appointed Stefan Ramge to its Supervisory Board by court order, effective January 2, 2025, until the April 9, 2025 Shareholders’ Meeting, where he will stand for election, succeeding Katja Hessel, who resigned at year-end 2024.

  • The Supervisory Board also proposes the election of Rachel Empey, former Member of the Board of Management at Fresenius Management SE, and Natalie Knight, former Board member at Stellantis N.V., to succeed Lars Hinrichs, who resigned in January 2025, and Dr. Helga Jung, whose term concludes at the Shareholders' Meeting.

MTU Aero Engines AG

  • The Supervisory Board of MTU Aero Engines AG nominates Dr. Peter Weckesser, Chief Digital Officer and Member of the Executive Committee of Schneider Electric SE, alongside Dr. Detlef Kayser, Independent Consultant and former member of the Executive Board of Lufthansa AG, for election at the Annual General Meeting on May 8, 2025. They are set to succeed Prof. Dr. Marion A. Weissenberger-Eibl, whose term concludes at the end of the Meeting, and Dr. Johannes Bussmann who has resigned from the Supervisory Board in turn to assume the role of Chief Executive Officer within the company during 2025.

Henkel AG & Co KGAA

  • Henkel AG & Co KGAA has announced that James Rowan will resign from his mandate on the Shareholders’ Committee, effective at the close of the Annual General Meeting on April 28, 2025. The Supervisory Board and Shareholders’ Committee propose Sabrina Soussan, former Chief Executive Officer and Chair of Suez S.A., as his successor, effective immediately after the Annual General Meeting. Soussan will serve for the remainder of Rowan's term, which extends until the Annual General Meeting that resolves on the discharge of the Shareholders' Committee for the 2027 financial year.

RWE AG

  • Dr. Werner Brandt has announced he will not stand for re-election at RWE AG’s Annual General Meeting on April 30, 2025, after serving as Chair of the Supervisory Board since 2013. The Supervisory Board has nominated Dr. Stefan Schulte, Chair of Fraport AG’s Executive Board, as the candidate to succeed him. 

  • The Supervisory Board intends to propose Dr. Frank Appel, former Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Post DHL Group, current Chair of Deutsche Telekom AG and member of the Supervisory Board of RWE AG since May 3, 2024, as the new Chair.

Siemens AG

  • Dr. Mark (Ulf) Schneider, former Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé S.A. and Fresenius SE & Co. KGAA, has been appointed to the Siemens AG Supervisory Board for a four-year term, effective February 13, 2025. Schneider succeeds Martina Merz, who has decided to resign after two years of service to pursue another Supervisory Board mandate.

  • Moreover, Dr. Schneider has been proposed in the Annual General Meeting 2025 invitation as a potential successor to Chair, Jim Hagemann Snabe, following Snabe’s stated intention to step down within the next two years.

Siemens Energy AG

  • Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath and Dr. Feiyu Xu have been appointed to the Siemens Energy AG Supervisory Board, effective February 20, 2025. Dotzenrath brings extensive experience from her role as Executive Board Member at BP plc, overseeing Gas & Low Carbon Energy, while Dr. Xu previously served as Senior Vice President and Global Head of Artificial Intelligence at SAP SE. They succeed Dr. Christine Bortenlänger and Hildegard Müller, who have concluded their tenure on the Supervisory Board following four-and-a-half years of dedicated service.

This paper reflects movements across DAX40 Supervisory Boards and Management Boards that have occurred or been announced within Q1 2025.

 


 

Contact

Jens-Thomas Pietralla
Russell Reynolds Associates
Neuturmstraße 5 | 80331 Munich | Germany
Direct: +49-89-2489-8151
jt.pietralla@russellreynolds.com