Edzard Reuter

Edzard Reuter Hans Wilhelm ( born February 16, 1928 in Berlin) was 1987-1995 Chairman of Daimler -Benz AG.

Life

The father Edzard Reuters, Ernst Reuter, was a prominent Social Democrat and 1948-1953 Governing Mayor of Berlin. The mother, Hannah Reuter, born Kleinert, was secretary of the party newspaper forward. After the seizure of power by the National Socialists, the family went into exile in Ankara and Edzard Reuter spent his childhood from 1935 to 1946 in Turkey. Since 1946 he is a member of the SPD.

After returning to Germany he began in 1947 to study mathematics and theoretical physics at the University of Berlin (now Humboldt University ) and later at the University of Göttingen. In 1949 he changed his profession and studied law at the newly founded University of Berlin. From 1954 to 1956 he was an assistant at the University in 1955, and laid the great state exam. After he had applied unsuccessfully at Daimler -Benz, he was from 1957 to 1962 in Berlin authorized representative of Ufa and then member of the management of Munich Bertelsmann television production.

1964 gave him Hanns Martin Schleyer employment in the Stuttgart headquarters of Daimler- Benz, which was then still in Stuttgart- Untertürkheim, where he rose later to the Board.

In July 1987, he was at the instigation of Alfred Lord Hausen succeed Werner Breitschwerdt as Chairman of Daimler -Benz AG. At his office, he confessed to an "open" corporate culture and cited as his maxim that "we are towards shareholders, to employees and to the environment feel equally responsible and act accordingly ." In the era Reuter a new corporate headquarters in Stuttgart- Möhringen was built for approximately EUR 300 million. Reuter loved the new headquarters, his successors they despised. Jürgen Schrempp called the campus-like building " Bullshit Castle", and Dieter Zetsche ordered shortly after taking office, even the extract of the Executive Board and the sale of the property to (Daimler Chrysler had in the course of an audit of its property portfolio building classified " as not necessary for operation ").

Diversification at Daimler

Reuter wanted to create an "integrated technology group " from the automotive company Daimler -Benz. To this end, in 1985, among other things, the shares of MAN were purchased on the engine and turbine - Union and the aviation and aerospace company Dornier. It was followed by the acquisition of the time already loss-making electrical company AEG and the acquisition of a majority interest Messerschmitt -Bolkow -Blohm. Different parts of these companies were merged to DASA; the remains of the AEG were finally liquidated in 1996 by his successor Jürgen Schrempp. In 1992 he was under decisive participation of Jürgen Schrempp an interest in the aircraft manufacturer Fokker. The total loss of this corporate restructuring of Daimler -Benz, by purchases, operating losses at the new companies and impairment losses amounted to around 36 billion DM, what Ekkehard Wenger as the "greatest destruction of capital that has ever existed in Germany in peacetime " commented.

In May 1995, he handed over to his successor, Jürgen Schrempp, who changed the Group the course. He gave up the vision of an integrated technology company and distanced himself from by emphasizing shareholder value by Reuters management philosophy.

In August 1994, Reuter brought in a Spiegel interview itself this week for the post of Mayor of Berlin. However, the Berlin parties did not address this.

Largely because of his commitment to the expansion of the Potsdamer Platz Reuter was made ​​an honorary citizen of Berlin in 1998.

He is Honorary Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Bank of Berlin and the board of several cultural and scientific support associations and foundations, including Helga and Edzard Reuter Foundation for the promotion of international understanding.

Since 2000, Reuter Management President and part owner of Swiss technology company u -blox, which produces circuits for GPS systems.

Reuter is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Zeitenspiegel reportage Günter Dahl.

Writings (selection )

• Appearance and reality. Memories. Siedler, Berlin 1998; Goldmann, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-442-75571-9.
• Hour of hypocrites. As managers and politicians fool us. Econ, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-430-20090-5.
• Egorepublik Germany. As we tear the gravedigger of Europe into the abyss. Campus, Frankfurt am Main, 2013, ISBN 978-3-593-39904-1.