Thyssenkrupp boss Hiesinger wants to leave – economy

• The boss of Thyssenkrupp Heinrich Hiesinger wants to resign
• The company confirms that it will be advised Friday.
• That Hiesinger lost the support of investors was already evident last Friday when the supervisory board discussed the Stahlfusion decided

Still on Monday, Heinrich Hiesinger smiles in the cameras of photographers and TV crews from around the world. While the boss of ThyssenKrupp solemnly announced that he had found a solution to the steel division of the traditional group: While US President Donald Trump was trying to protect the US steel industry against imports from the United States. Asia, Hiesinger proclaimed a European entrepreneurial solution: Thyssenkrupp outsources its steelworks to a joint venture with its competitor Tata Steel Europe, which, as 'number two', has to deal with all the fluctuations of the market. steel. "After two years of negotiations, I feel good," Hiesinger said. "This is an important step for ThyssenKrupp."

At the time, no one suspected that the 58-year-old man was to announce his resignation only three days later: Hiesinger wants to resign from his position as CEO. Thyssenkrupp announced this Thursday night. The supervisory board will decide this Friday on the staff.

The former director of Siemens rescued Thyssenkrupp from ruin and found a reasonable solution for the steel division. But his vision of a strong industrial group, who earns money with elevators, auto parts and large-scale facilities, Hiesinger can no longer implement. He seems to be leaning against the persistent public criticism of his own investors.

The Swabian has been at the helm of the established company for seven years

"I consciously make this move to facilitate a fundamental discussion at the Supervisory Board on the The future of ThyssenKrupp "says Hiesinger in his most recent communication as CEO. "A common understanding of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board on the strategic direction of the company is a prerequisite for the success of corporate governance." This support Hiesinger has apparently lost.

Swabia has been at the head of the traditional group for seven years. When he took office as CEO, Thyssenkrupp had just lost several billion dollars in a steel mill with loss in the Brazilian swamp. To date, the Group suffers from the debts of the time. "The board of directors headed by Heinrich Hiesinger has released Thyssenkrupp from a crisis that threatens its existence," said Thursday the chairman of the supervisory board, Ulrich Lehner, highlighting the merits of the managing director. "Without Heinrich Hiesinger, Thyssenkrupp would no longer exist."

The engineering doctor sold divisions prone to seizures such as stainless steel. He traded 70 percent of the group's executives, because so many were suspected of corruption. "Today, Thyssenkrupp is a totally different society in terms of culture, values ​​and performance," Hiesinger said Thursday. "We can be proud of what we have achieved so far."

However, the reorganization does not go far enough for several major shareholders. As soon as Thyssenkrupp sealed its merger with Tata this weekend, Swedish investor Cevian has increased pressure on Hiesinger and demanded further spinoffs: "ThyssenKrupp has failed with the conglomerate's strategy and its matrix organization," says Lars Förberg, founder of Cevian. The company owns more than 15% of the shares of the traditional group. These could be worth 50 euros on the stock market, Förberg scolded, if the board only made the right decisions. Currently, the paper is listed below 22 euros.

Hiesinger really wanted to introduce a new strategy for ThyssenKrupp

In the spring, the infamous Elliott fund also joined ThyssenKrupp. Elliott holds up to now less than three percent of the shares. However, the fund of American investor Paul Singer is known to go into allegedly dumped companies to publicly demand the dismissal of executives to eventually sell the shares with the fastest profit possible.

In fact, Hiesinger wanted his new strategy for Thyssenkrupp. In this one, he explicitly planned not to break the traditional group: Hiesinger believes in the benefits of a group composed of several divisions. Hiesinger has publicly announced that specific financial goals for Thyssenkrupp. Insiders now suspect that Hiesinger's strategy has already disappointed investors in individual preliminary discussions.

The fact that he lost investor support was already evident last Friday when the supervisory board decided on the merger of steel. Several representatives from the capital side did not agree. Hiesinger could then speak of "overwhelming approval" only because his bank of employees had voted in favor of the steel merger, which offered Thyssenkrupp considerable guarantees for steelmakers.

Hiesinger met Tuesday with the leaders of his group. According to the participants, he seemed remarkably resolute when he invoked the transformative power of Thyssenkrupp. Now, the Ruhr group could face other upheavals.