Leadership & governance

"Our mission at ESMT Berlin is to develop entrepreneurial leaders who think globally and act responsibly. Responsible leaders who make a difference have the courage to make difficult decisions, take risks, and even make mistakes. At the same time, they inspire others to take on challenges and embrace positive change. We are committed to developing our students into leaders who embody a sense of responsibility, share knowledge and resources, and actively work to create a better world for all.”

– Jörg Rocholl, President, ESMT Berlin

School governance

ESMT Berlin has two spheres of governance: corporate and academic. The corporate governance of the school regulates all strategic and operative issues. The president and CFO of ESMT are its legal stewards. They are controlled by the supervisory board and advised by the Management Committee (MC) as the supreme advisory body of the school. Its members are, besides the president and CFO, the dean of faculty and research, and the dean of programs.

The academic governance of ESMT covers all matters of faculty policy, research, and education. There are two main bodies: The academic board is an independent advisory body for academic matters. The academic committee supervises and advises the president on fundamental issues of research, academic instruction, and the further development of the study program. The president is in charge of ESMT and represents the school in both spheres of its governance.

Governing and advisory bodies

Supervisory Board of ESMT GmbH
The supervisory board is a controlling governing body of ESMT GmbH. It controls and advises the management directors of the school.

Chairperson: Dr. Werner Zedelius, Senior Advisor, Allianz SE

Filiz Albrecht, Member of the Board of Management and CHRO, Robert Bosch GmbH

Prof. Dr. Andreas Dombret, Global Senior Advisor, Oliver Wyman GmbH, and former Board Member, Deutsche Bundesbank AG (2010 - 2018)

Dr. Joachim Faber, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Harald Quandt Holding

Jürgen Hartwig, Member of the Board of Management, Daimler Truck AG, Human Resources

Marion Höllinger, Spokeswoman of the Management Board (CEO), HypoVereinsbank - UniCredit Bank AG

Sabine Kohleisen Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, HR, and Director of Labor Relations

Dr. Thomas Ogilvie, Member of the Board - HR & Arbeitsdirektor, Deutsche Post DHL Group

Karl von Rohr, Member of Management Board, Chief Administrative Officer, Deutsche Bank AG

Zvezdana Seeger, Member of the Executive Board of RWE AG / Chief Human Resources Officer (CHO) and Labour Director

Judith Wiese, CHRO and Member of the Managing Board, Siemens AG
Management Committee
Members of the management committee provide updates from their areas and give recommendations to the managing directors on various administrative and operative issues.

Chairperson: Prof. Jörg Rocholl, PhD, President and Managing Director, ESMT Berlin

Georg Garlichs, Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director, ESMT Berlin

Prof. Harald Hungenberg, Dean of Programs, ESMT Berlin

Per Olsson, Dean of Faculty and Research, Deutsche Post DHL Group Professor in Sustainable Accounting
Advisory Committee (AC)
The Advisory Committee (AC) consists of eight members from different parts of ESMT. The mission of the AC is to support the work of the MC by bringing in diverse perspectives from different areas of ESMT. The AC has the mandate to provide input and propose concrete actions by developing new policies and procedures, developing strategies and plans to address business challenges, and driving forward crosscutting, new projects within ESMT. The members are:

Molly Ihlbrock, Director of Corporate Communications

Tatiana Lluent, Assistant Professor of Strategy and Volkswagen Group Junior Chair for Diversity in Organizations

Rebecca Loades, Director, MBA Programs

Carolin Ludwig, Deputy Director of Human Resources

Henry Sauermann, Professor of Strategy, ESMT Chair in Entrepreneurship, and Director of the Institute for Endowment Management and Entrepreneurial Finance (IFEE)

Roland Siegers, Director, External Engagement

Sonja Tolsdorff, Director of Accounting and Controlling

Valentina Werner, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs
Academic Board
The Academic Board consists of leading academics of international reputation. Members of the Academic Board are proposed by the faculty and appointed by the president. They advise ESMT Berlin and its president on all fundamental academic issues and provide feedback on ESMT’s academic development.

Chairperson: Tim Baldenius, Paul M. Montrone Professor of Private Enterprise in the Faculty of Business, Columbia Business School

Amy C. Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management, Harvard Business School

Alfonso Gambardella, Professor of Management and Head of the Department of Management and Technology, Università Bocconi

Martin Gargiulo, Professor of Entrepreneurship, INSEAD

Michael J. Page, Professor of Finance and Management, Bentley University

Manju Puri, J. B. Fuqua Professor; Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business

Vinod Singhal, Professor of Operations Management, Associate Dean, MBA Programs; Dunn Family Professorship in Operations Management; Scheller College of Business, Georgia Institute of Technology

Edward A. Snyder, Professor of Economics and Management, Yale School of Management.

Reinhilde Veugelers, Full Professor, Department of Management, KU Leuven

Florian Zettelmeyer, Nancy L. Ertle Professor of Marketing, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
Academic Committee
The Academic Committee is an academic supervisory and advisory body of ESMT. Current members are:

Chairperson: Prof. Jörg Rocholl, PhD, President and Managing Director, ESMT Berlin

Prof. Matthew Bothner, PhD, ESMT Berlin

Prof. Gianluca Carnabuci, PhD, ESMT Berlin

Alexander Hijmering, EMBA Class 2021-2023

Prof. Harald Hungenberg, Dean of Programs, ESMT Berlin

Oscar Knipp, MIM Class 2021-2023

Jingze Nate Niu, PhD Student, ESMT Berlin

Prof. Per Olsson, Dean of Faculty and Research, ESMT Berlin

Prof. Catalina Stefanescu-Cuntze, PhD, ESMT Berlin

Fabian Unger, MIM Class 2022-2024

Rachel Wang, MBA Class 2022-2023

Maria Zambrano. EMBA Class 2022-2024
ESMT Foundation Board of Trustees
Executive Committee

Chairperson: Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management, Mercedes-Benz Group AG

Vice Chairperson: Christian Sewing, CEO, Deutsche Bank AG

Additional members

Prof. Stefan Asenkerschbaumer, Chair of the Supervisory Board, Robert Bosch GmbH

Dr. Roland Busch, President and Chief Executive Officer, Siemens AG

Timotheus Höttges, Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Telekom AG

Martina Merz, Chief Executive Officer, thyssenkrupp AG

Carsten Spohr, Chair of the Executive Board and CEO, Deutsche Lufthansa AG
International Advisory Council
The International Advisory Council (IAC) was instituted by the Board of Trustees of the ESMT Foundation to provide external perspective, assessment, and support to the school. As a body of ESMT Foundation, its main goals are to foster the mission of ESMT by acting as an advocate for us around the world, to support our founding principles and values, and to promote the relationships with our founders and other individuals and organizations associated with the school.

Chairperson: Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management, Mercedes-Benz Group AG

Mansoor Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud, Chief Executive Officer, Qatar Investment Authority

Dr. Patrick Adenauer, Managing Partner, Bauwens GmbH & Co. KG

Klaus Becker, CEO, KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft

Dr. Clemens Börsig, Former Chairman of the Board of Management, Deutsche Bank Stiftung

Dr. Gerhard Cromme, Chairman and CEO, P.A.C. Consulting

Dr. Julian Deutz, Member of the Executive Board, Axel Springer SE

Dr. Michael Diederich, Spokesman of the Management Board, HypoVereinsbank – UniCredit Bank AG

Michael Diekmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Allianz SE

Dr. Corinne Flick, Founder and Chair, Convoco Foundation

Jan-Hendrik Goldbeck, Managing Director, GOLDBECK GmbH

Dr. h. c. Christoph Henkel, Chairman of the Management Board, Dr. Jost Henkel Stiftung

Dr. Achim Kassow, Member of the Board of Management, Munich Re

Carsten Kratz, Managing Director, Bridgepoint GmbH

David Knower, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director, Cerberus Deutschland Beteiligungsberatung GmbH

Torsten Kurth, Managing Director & Senior Partner, Boston Consulting Group GmbH

Dr. Anja Langenbucher, Director, Europe Office, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Dr. Johannes-Tobias Lorenz, Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company, Inc

Frank Mattern, Director Emeritus, McKinsey & Company, Inc.

Philippe Oddo, CEO and General Partner, ODDO BHF AG

Dr. Thomas Ogilvie, Member of the Board - HR and Arbeitsdirektor Deutsche Post DHL Group

Arne Puls, Chief Human Resources Officer and Labour Director, MAN Truck & Bus SE

Thomas Schmall-von Westerholt, Member of the Board of Management, Technology, and CEO of Volkswagen Group Components, Volkswagen AG

Professor Hermann Simon, Honorary Chairman and Founder, Simon, Kucher & Partners
Board of Friends of ESMT
Chairperson: Prof. Dr. Harald Hungenberg, ESMT Berlin

Vice Chairperson: Dr. Oliver Engels, Managing Director, Chief Risk Officer, Deutsche Börse AG

Treasurer: Georg Garlichs, Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director, ESMT Berlin

Nick Barniville, Advisor, EdTech and Social Impact Programs, ESMT Berlin

Anke Dassler, Head of Support Segments and Legal Entities, Evonik Industries AG

Claudia Donzelmann, Global Head of Regulatory and Public Affairs, Allianz SE

Wolfgang Stadler, independent, previous Executive Director Manufacturing, Jaguar Land Rover, UK

Find more information about the Friends of ESMT here.

Legal structure

Twenty-five corporations and institutions established the endowed ESMT Foundation, which consequently founded ESMT European School of Management and Technology GmbH. The executive committee of the ESMT Foundation legally represents and leads the foundation and is controlled by the board of trustees. Both are advised by the international advisory council.

The majority shareholder of the school is the ESMT Foundation and the minority shareholder is the Gesellschaft der Freunde und Förderer der ESMT e. V. (Friends of ESMT).