Continental names Welzbacher CFO
From 1 October 2025, Roland Welzbacher will become Chief Financial Officer of Continental AG. He succeeds Olaf Schick, who requested the early termination of his contract in December 2024.
Tag Archive for: Wolfgang Reitzle
Von Hirschheydt to head independent company following Continental Automotive spin-off
Continental has shared its concrete plan for the spin-off of its Automotive group sector. According to information discussed at a meeting held on Wednesday, the plan involves completing the spin-off of Automotive as a Societas Europaea compnay listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange by the end of 2025. The independent company will operate under a new brand, which Continental will launch by the end of April 2025, under the leadership of Philipp von Hirschheydt.
“Fully committed” to spin-off – Olaf Schick leaving Continental
Olaf Schick will part ways with Continental earlier than planned. A committee within the company’s Supervisory Board has agreed to the Chief Financial Officer’s request to step down on 30 September 2025. Schick will also relinquish the role of Executive Board member for Finance, Integrity and Law. He intends to return to Mercedes-Benz Group and will join its board of management on 1 October 2025.
Two independent companies – Continental evaluating Automotive spin-off
After concluding a strategic review in response to “the increasingly dynamic markets in the automotive industry,” Continental is more closely examining the possibility of spinning off its Automotive group sector business. The Continental Executive Board has announced that the company will “conduct a further detailed evaluation” before deciding on the matter in the fourth quarter of 2024. If approved by shareholders, Continental intends to complete the spin-off by the end of 2025.
Continental’s Reitzle confirms continued Board availability
As Tyrepress reported on 11 December, Wolfgang Reitzle no longer intends to end his tenure as chairman of the Continental AG Supervisory Board in 2024. At a Supervisory Board meeting on 13 December, he confirmed his availability to serve for an additional two years.
Two more years – Reitzle to stay on Continental’s Supervisory Board
Wolfgang Reitzle, now aged 74, planned to step down as chairman of the Continental AG Supervisory Board when his current tenure concludes following the company’s 2024 Annual Shareholders’ Meeting. However, German financial publication Wirtschaftswoche writes that Reitzle will once again stand for election to the Supervisory Board at next April’s meeting, albeit only for a two-year term of office.
Continental extends & appoints
At its meeting yesterday, the Continental AG Supervisory Board extended the appointment of Nikolai Setzer, the company’s chief executive officer and Executive Board chairman. It also appointed Philipp von Hirschheydt as a new Executive Board member for the Continental Automotive group sector, effective 1 May 2023.
‘Integrity & Law’ function added to Continental Executive Board
Continental AG is consolidating responsibility for law, compliance and risk management under one Executive Board function. This ‘Integrity and Law’ function will be headed by Olaf Schick, who on 1 July 2023 joins the Executive Board for a three-year period, expanding the board to six members.
Aachen tyre plant: Continental blocking potential investors, says union
Strong words from one of the unions representing workers at the Continental tyre factory in Aachen, Germany. Speaking with Munich-based newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, IG BCE trade union chairman Michael Vassiliadis stressed that the planned job cuts “will be expensive”. He also claimed that Continental has turned away potential investors.
Continental CEO Degenhart resigns
Although his contract has almost another four years to run, Dr Elmar Degenhart has notified Continental AG of his intention to step down as chief executive officer and as director of the Continental Executive Board. Dr Degenhart’s decision to take leave of the company on 30 November 2020 is based upon “reasons of immediately essential preventive health care,” he informed Continental’s Supervisory Board yesterday. In the near future, Professor Wolfgang Reitzle will convene the Supervisory Board to decide upon the appointment of Degenhart’s successor.
Supervisory Board approves Continental realignment
Major organisational changes proposed by Continental AG have gained the blessing of the company’s Supervisory Board. At a meeting today, board members approved the creation of a new Continental AG holding structure, ‘Continental Group’, and also gave the green light to making an independent legal entity out of the company’s Powertrain division ahead of its partial initial public offering (IPO) in mid-2019.
Continental split may begin this year – Manager Magazin
We may see a breakup of Continental AG commencing before the end of this year. German business publication Manager Magazin writes that Wolfgang Reitzle, chairman of the tyre maker and automotive technology company’s Supervisory Board, foresees the first subsidiary to emerge from this breakup being listed on the stock exchange some time in 2018. He sees this as being the direction Continental will clearly take, even though to-date neither the Supervisory Board nor the Executive Board has decided upon a concrete course of action.
Continental’s new board less of a ‘man’s world’
Last November, Germany’s main political parties agreed in principle to the idea of requiring companies based in the country to allocate 30 per cent of their non-executive board seats to women as of 2016. The concept is yet to become law, however many German firms are implementing their own gender initiatives ahead of the possible introduction of such legislation. Continental AG is one such company, and when its new Supervisory Board met for the first time on 25 April, its numbers included three freshly-elected women. The presence of four female members on the 20-strong board means Continental has exceeded its target of having a Supervisory Board with 15 per cent women following the 2014 elections.
Continental parting ways with human resources head
On numerous occasions German tyre maker and automotive supplier Continental has indicated its intention to increase the number of women holding senior positions within the company, therefore the contract renewal of human resources head Elke Strathmann – the first and currently only female member of Continental’s Executive Board – appeared a mere formality. Yet the company has allegedly decided against renewing her contract upon its expiry at the end of December.
