Change of CEO at GfK SE

Matthias Hartmann will be the new CEO of GfK SE from 2012

Nuremberg, August 1, 2011 – In its meeting today, the Supervisory Board of GfK SE appointed Matthias Hartmann as the new CEO of GfK SE with effect from January 1, 2012 at the latest.

Matthias Hartmann (45) will take over as CEO from Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst, who, after 20 years on the GfK Management Board, 13 of which were spent as CEO, has decided not to extend his current contract for personal reasons. Hartmann has been appointed for three years.

At present, Hartmann, a business management graduate, holds the position of Global Head of Strategy and Industries in the consulting division of IBM Global Business Services within the IBM Group.

He began his career at IBM in 1988, primarily working in the banking and insurance divisions in Germany, Europe and the USA for the first six years. Between 1993 and 2002, he held various positions at the former IBM Unternehmensberatung GmbH, where he was Managing Director from the year 2000.

Matthias Hartmann held a leading role within the global integration team during IBM’s acquisition of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting in 2002, supporting the merger of 30,000 PwC-Consulting and 30,000 IBM consultants. Before becoming Managing Director in Germany in 2005, he was Vice President at IBM’s Group headquarters in Armonk, USA, where he was responsible for strategy development in various IBM business divisions.

In February 2010, he became Global Head of Strategy and Industries, assuming worldwide responsibility in the consulting division of IBM Global Business Services, which is the world’s largest provider of corporate consultancy services. This division makes a considerable contribution to the business success of the Group.

Dr. Arno Mahlert, Supervisory Board Chairman of GfK SE, commented on the appointment of the new CEO: "We are delighted to have found such a competent successor to Professor Dr. Klaus Wübbenhorst in Matthias Hartmann. His many years’ strategic experience in a service business and international expertise at a leading global services company mean Matthias Hartmann is the ideal person to lead GfK into a global and digital future under its new corporate strategy.”

Matthias Hartmann will take responsibility as CEO on January 1, 2012 at the latest. Once he assumes his role as CEO, the current CEO Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst will resign from his post and leave the company. The Management Board will comprise four members from the start of 2012.

The CEO is responsible for the GfK Group’s overall strategy and IT strategy, Internal Audit, Marketing Sciences, Corporate Communications and Marketing, as well as for strategic succession management and personnel development.

GfK’s CFO, Pamela Knapp, will continue to hold responsibility for Financial Services, Human Resources and Central Services.

Dr. Gerhard Hausruckinger will assume responsibility for the Consumer Choices sector, which will include business from the previous Retail and Technology sector and TV, radio and print measurement from the former Media sector.

Responsibility for the Consumer Experiences sector, which will comprise the former Custom Research sector and ad hoc research from the previous Media sector, will be held by Debra A. Pruent.