Heinrich Hiesinger

Heinrich Hiesinger (born 25 May 1960) is a German engineer and manager who served as the CEO of ThyssenKrupp from 2011 until 2018.

Early life and education

The eldest of six children raised on a farm,[1] Hiesinger was born in Bopfingen in southern Germany and grew up on a farm. He obtained a PhD in Electrical engineering at the Technical University of Munich, Germany.[2]

Career

Siemens

From 1992 to 2010, Hiesinger held several positions within the Siemens Group. From 1999 until 2000, he led Siemens Metering AG, based in Switzerland. When a corruption scandal led to a major management reshuffle in 2007,[3] he became a member of the board of Siemens, under the leadership of CEO Peter Löscher. In 2008 he was additionally appointed CEO of the Industry Sector of Siemens and head of the central department Corporate Information Technology. In that capacity, during that time, he cut 2,000 jobs at the company's Industry Sector.[4]

ThyssenKrupp

On 1 October 2010, Hiesinger left Siemens to join the board of ThyssenKrupp. On 21 January 2011, Hiesinger succeeded Ekkehard Schulz as CEO;[5] he was the first ThyssenKrupp CEO to be hired from outside the steel industry when Chairman Gerhard Cromme brought him over from Siemens. In that capacity, he was responsible for the Asia/Pacific and China regions.

Upon becoming CEO, Hiesinger tried to shift the focus of ThyssenKrupp from the volatile steel sector to higher-margin products and services such as elevators, industrial plants and high-performance car parts.[6] Within the first three years, he replaced about 70 percent of the 40 top managers,[7] cut annual costs by 600 million euros[8] and sold off ThyssenKrupp units – including civil shipbuilding and various steel units[9] – with at least 10 billion euros ($13.6 billion) of annual sales, a quarter of group turnover.[10] Under his leadership, the company reported its first net profit in four years in 2014.[11] That year, Hiesinger's contract was renewed ahead of time until 2020, a sign of approval from the company's two biggest shareholders, the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation and activist investor Cevian.[12]

In his capacity at ThyssenKrupp, Hiesinger was part of Chancellor Angela Merkel's delegation on state visits to China in 2012,[13] 2014[14] and 2016.[15] During the Hannover Messe in April 2016, he was among the 15 German CEOs who were invited to a private dinner with President Barack Obama.[16] At the 2018 World Economic Forum in Davos, he attended a dinner of President Donald Trump with a group of European CEOs.[17]

By 2017, ThyssenKrupp's shares lost 18 percent during Hiesinger's time in office, underperforming an 87-percent rise in the DAX, but performed more strongly than ArcelorMittal, the world's biggest steelmaker.[18]

On 7 July 2018, the supervisory board agreed to Hiesinger's request to terminate his contract.[19]

Other activities

Corporate boards
  • ZF Friedrichshafen, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2020)[20][21]
  • Evolutionizer, Member of the Advisory Council (since 2020)[22][23]
  • Deutsche Post, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2019)[24]
  • Fresenius Management, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2019)[25]
  • BMW, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2017)
  • ThyssenKrupp Elevator AG, Chairman of the Supervisory Board (2011-2018)
  • ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe AG, Chairman of the Supervisory Board (2011-2018)

Non-profit organizations

References
  1. Chris Bryant (December 14, 2012), Turnround test for ThyssenKrupp chief Financial Times.
  2. "Business Week". Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-15.
  3. Marilyn Gerlach (May 4, 2010), ThyssenKrupp picks outsider as new CEO Reuters.
  4. Marilyn Gerlach (May 4, 2010), ThyssenKrupp picks outsider as new CEO Reuters.
  5. "Management – Executive Board".
  6. Maria Sheahan (January 17, 2014), ThyssenKrupp CEO tells investors needs time for overhaul Reuters.
  7. Chris Bryant (September 25, 2013), Hiesinger faces challenge to recast Germany's ThyssenKrupp Financial Times.
  8. Stanley Reed (January 6, 2014), A Delicate Balance for the Turnaround Chief of ThyssenKrupp New York Times.
  9. Stanley Reed (November 19, 2014), ThyssenKrupp, an Old European Conglomerate, Tries to Learn a New Business Style New York Times.
  10. Maria Sheahan and Tom Käckenhoff (January 12, 2014), ThyssenKrupp chief tests shareholder patience on steelmaker overhaul Reuters.
  11. Georgina Prodhan and Tom Käckenhoff (November 20, 2014), ThyssenKrupp restarts dividend as turnaround takes hold Reuters.
  12. Georgina Prodhan and Tom Käckenhoff (November 20, 2014), ThyssenKrupp restarts dividend as turnaround takes hold Reuters.
  13. Henning Krumrey (August 29, 2012), Kanzlerin reist mit zwei Airbussen nach China Wirtschaftswoche.
  14. Ralf Schuler and Henrik Jeimke-Karge (March 7, 2014), China-Reise: Mit diesen Managern reist Merkel ins Reich der Mitte BILD.
  15. Stephan Scheuer and Thomas Sigmund (June 13, 2016), Merkel in China: In heikler Mission Handelsblatt.
  16. Hans von der Burchard (April 25, 2016), POLITICO Pro's Morning Trade: Breaking bread with the president Politico Europe.
  17. Jennifer Jacobs (January 25, 2018), Here's Who's Having Dinner With Trump at Davos Bloomberg News.
  18. Christoph Steitz and Tom Käckenhoff (January 17, 2018), Investors intensify pressure on Thyssenkrupp boss before AGM Reuters.
  19. Maria Sheahan (July 6, 2018), Thyssenkrupp accepts CEO Hiesinger's resignation Reuters.
  20. Dr. Heinrich Hiesinger to join ZF Supervisory Board ZF Friedrichshafen, press release of December 1, 2020.
  21. Wechsel im ZF-Aufsichtsrat – Heinrich Hiesinger folgt auf Ernst Baumann Südkurier, December 1, 2020.
  22. Advisory Council Evolutionizer.
  23. Tanja Kewes (June 1, 2020), Ex-BMW-Chef Krüger arbeitet nun für kanadischen Pensionsfonds Handelsblatt.
  24. Heinrich Hiesinger: Ex-Thyssen-Chef soll in Aufsichtsrat der Deutschen Post Handelsblatt, April 15, 2019.
  25. Supervisory Board Fresenius.
  26. Board of Trustees Baden-Badener Unternehmer-Gespräche (BBUG).
  27. Members European Round Table of Industrialists.
  28. Board of Trustees European School of Management and Technology (ESMT).
  29. Presidential Board Federation of German Industries (BDI).
  30. Board Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft.
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