Tops vs. Flops
Tops vs. Flops

Bayer & Temasek – the economic war reaches the AGM season

There are good reasons to criticize Bayer’s strategy. But the fact that the sovereign wealth fund of an autocratic country is blowing the whistle right now should set alarm bells ringing. Bayer is facing a turbulent Annual Stockholders’ Meeting on April 29. This year, opposition is coming not only from the usual suspects, but also from major shareholder Temasek. The Singapore sovereign wealth fund, which holds four percent of the …

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Tops vs. Flops

Greenpeace, Amnesty & Co.: Who actually monitors the good guys?

Civil society organizations (NGOs) have a significant influence on political decision-making processes. High time to talk about their governance structures. Shortly after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, a Greenpeace expert criticized the German government for not “stuffing even more money down the throat of the arms industry. In view of the impending hunger crisis, it must increase the development budget, demanded “Bread for the World” a little later. …

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Tops vs. Flops

More politicians on the supervisory boards!

Yes, you read that correctly. We would like to see more politicians on supervisory boards, even though up to now we have been calling almost mantra-like for “professionals” to be appointed instead. A 180-degree turnaround? Only at first glance. Putin’s brutal war of aggression in Ukraine is a shocking reminder that the geopolitical risks for companies have increased significantly. Many executive and supervisory boards now have to make painful decisions: …

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Tops vs. Flops

Snabe vs. Kaeser: The end of multi-supervisory boards?

Overboarding: Busy controllers are increasingly being targeted by shareholders. Some recognize the signs of the times, others continue to collect items as if their working day had 24 hours Jim Hagemann Snabe is resigning from two posts at once: the former SAP CEO is leaving the supervisory boards of Allianz and Maersk, as was announced at the beginning of the month. This will give the 56-year-old more time to concentrate …

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Tops vs. Flops

Why the defense industry needs new supervisory boards

Nowhere does artificial intelligence raise more pressing ethical questions than when it comes to weapons. Are the supervisory boards of leading manufacturers and system suppliers prepared for the age of killer robots? Thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous weapons systems will decide on their own whether and whom to attack: That’s a real horror scenario. But it is becoming more realistic with each passing day. In December, the international ban …

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Tops vs. Flops

Bock, Rabe, Reitzle – Why do supervisory boards approve share buybacks?

Corona crisis. Digitization. Climate protection. But instead of putting money aside or investing heavily, Dax companies are buying shares en masse. A revelation that reveals considerable problems in the supervisory boards Have you been rubbing your eyes in amazement, too? German companies plan to spend up to 17 billion euros on share buybacks, the Handelsblatt recently reported. A record figure. As if the Corona crisis had been over for a …

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Tops vs. Flops

Supervisory Board Member of the Year: Cristina Stenbeck (Zalando)

No female chief controller focuses more consistently on entrepreneurial spirit, digital expertise and diversity than the Swede, who comes from a family of industrialists steeped in tradition. Chapeau. For a long time, Zalando was not particularly high in our favour. But in recent years, the online retailer has made great strides – especially at the supervisory board level. For example, board head Cristina Stenbeck (44) hired two successful digital entrepreneurs …

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Tops vs. Flops

Better than Luisa Neubauer? The climate experts on German supervisory boards

Sustainability expertise is still rare on Germany’s supervisory boards. Of all things, it is a supervisory board chairman who got off to a particularly clumsy start who has become a role model. Do you remember? A good two years ago, Joe Kaeser tried to recruit climate activist Luisa Neubauer for the supervisory board of Siemens Energy. But he was rebuffed – and earned plenty of ridicule and criticism. But in …

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Tops vs. Flops

Africa – the blind spot of German management boards

A look at the boardrooms reveals this: It is no coincidence that many companies leave future markets in Africa to the left. Supervisory boards should address another diversity category. Siegfried Russwurm’s message to the young leaders was clear: Africa is a continent of opportunity, said the BDI President in his keynote speech at “AGYLE Week 2021”. The “African German Young Leaders in Business” (AGYLE) must now convince those who decide …

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Jackie Joyner-Kersee & Co. – the colourful birds on German supervisory boards

Veteran managers are increasingly being joined by dazzling personalities from the worlds of sport, politics and civil society. But are the newcomers really driving forces – or just fig leaves? The older ones among you will know them: Former world-class athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee has sat on Adidas’ supervisory board since the annual general meeting in May. This is the first mandate for the 59-year-old, who supports children and young people …

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Tops vs. Flops

Adler Group: How trustworthy is the Board of Directors?

After Wirecard and Grenke, shortseller Fraser Perring is taking aim at the real estate group Adler Group. We have therefore taken a look at the controllers of the S-Dax company. Let’s start with self-criticism: We addressed the serious weaknesses of the Wirecard Supervisory Board early on, but were too quick to be satisfied after several new appointments. The subsequent scandal therefore made us realise that good Supervisory Board members do …

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Tops vs. Flops

HelloFresh & Zalando – who has the better supervisory board?

High female quotas, successful digital entrepreneurs, few conflicts of interest: the young Dax newcomers also differ from the top dogs at supervisory board level. Emulation is encouraged. Those looking for an interesting supervisory board will also find what they are looking for at Zalando: Chief controller Cristina Stenbeck has not only gathered four other women around her, which corresponds to a female quota of 55 percent. In addition, Niklas Östberg …

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