Roland Berger Strategy Consultants: Charles-Edouard Bouée Elected New CEO

MUNICH and FRANKFURT AM MAIN, June 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

• International Partner Meeting in Frankfurt: Partners appoint Charles-Edouard Bouée as global CEO 
• Burkhard Schwenker rejoins the Supervisory Board  
• Twelve new Partners appointed, nine promoted to Senior Partner 

At their regular meeting in Frankfurt am Main, the 200 participating Partners of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants elected Charles-Edouard Bouée (45) new CEO of the international strategy consultancy. Former CEO Burkhard Schwenker (56) was elected to the Supervisory Board.

"Charles-Edouard Bouée has played a key role in the realignment of the partnership in the last 12 months," said outgoing global CEO Burkhard Schwenker. "After working closely together for more than 13 years I am convinced that Charles-Edouard will bring our joint vision to life and increase the strength of our firm globally."

Charles-Edouard Bouée commented: "Our firm has a German heritage and European roots. That gives it a unique DNA, setting us clearly apart from other strategy consultancies. We stand for game changing ideas and the lasting success of our clients all over the world." The Partners at the meeting expressed their vision of building the most valuable consulting firm in the eyes of all stakeholders.

"I am delighted that our election of a non-German CEO, a man who has demonstrated his capabilities by developing markets around the globe, provides further definitive proof of our credentials as a globally operating strategy consultancy of German and European origin," said the company's founder and honorary chairman, Roland Berger, after the election.

Charles-Edouard Bouée and Roland Berger thanked Burkhard Schwenker for his outstanding work and his commitment to the firm. Schwenker, who was already CEO from 2003 to 2010, had moved from chairmanship of the Supervisory Board to CEO again in May 2013 after the former CEO stepped down from the role. He was the key driver of the company's realignment, working closely with Charles-Edouard Bouée, who was Chief Operating Officer (COO) during this period.

In accordance with the procedures of the partnership, the Supervisory Board will elect the Chairman and approve the Deputy CEOs proposed by Charles-Edouard Bouée soon.

The new Roland Berger Partners 

In the course of the meeting, the Partners also elected twelve new Partners worldwide, thus reinforcing its international presence. In addition, nine Partners were promoted to Senior Partner. "These promotions demonstrate the vitality and the dynamism of the partnership," said CEO Charles-Edouard Bouée, "and the eleven Partners who joined us in the last six months alone confirm the attractiveness of our partnership for talented professionals."

Brief profiles

Charles-Edouard Bouée (45) is the first non-German to head the biggest international strategy consultancy of European origin. He joined Roland Berger in 2001, having studied at the Ecole Centrale in Paris (Master of Science), graduated from Harvard (MBA) and earned a law degree. Charles-Edouard has lived in four countries. He was Chairman of the regions France, Belgium and North Africa and head of Roland Berger's Asian business and he was also President & Managing Partner for Greater China (Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Taipei and Hong Kong). In this role he is in charge of projects for a wide range of companies and organizations in need of support with strategic and operational challenges in Europe and China. He is a winner of the Shanghai Magnolia Gold Award and has authored numerous books about management principles, combining his experience in Asia, the US and Europe. His latest book on "Light Footprint Management" provides a consistent set of principles for leaders on how to succeed in an increasingly challenging environment. In 2010, Bouée assumed responsibility within the EC for France, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Morocco and heads the Asia Leadership Team (for Greater China, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia). In his role as COO, he was responsible for Global Operations from May 2013.

Burkhard Schwenker (56) was already Chairman of the Supervisory Board between July 2010 and May 2013. Schwenker first became a member of the Executive Committee back in 1998. He was appointed CEO by the Partners in 2003 and was reelected for a second term in 2006. He then assumed the role of CEO again in May 2013 when the company's then-CEO stepped down. Having studied business administration and mathematics, Schwenker began his professional career in industry before completing his Ph.D. He joined Roland Berger in 1989 and was elected Partner in 1992. Schwenker is an expert in strategy, organization and corporate transformation. He is an author of many books on leadership, strategy and scenario planning and he regularly lectures at business schools and universities and has a seat on their boards. He is also active in various sociopolitical institutions, for instance holding the posts of Deputy Chairman of Atlantik-Brücke e.V. and Chairman of the Roland Berger Foundation.

Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, founded in 1967, is one of the world's leading strategy consultancies. With over 2.700 employees working in 51 offices in 36 countries worldwide, we have successful operations in all major international markets. The strategy consultancy is an independent partnership exclusively owned by about 250 Partners. 

Picture is available via epa european pressphoto agency (http://www.epa.eu).

For further information, please contact:

Susanne Horstmann
Roland Berger Strategy Consultants
Tel. +49-89-9230-8349
E-mail: press@rolandberger.com
http://www.rolandberger.com