Dr. Arno Mahlert appointed new Supervisory Board Chairman of GfK AG
Thanks to the Management Board under leadership of Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst for the extremely successful work and high level of commitment in the last few months
Nuremberg, September 26, 2008 – At yesterday’s meeting of the Supervisory Board, Dr. Arno Mahlert, CEO of maxingvest ag, Hamburg, and Supervisory Board Chairman of Springer Science+Business Media S.A., Luxemburg, was appointed the new Supervisory Board Chairman of GfK AG. At the same time, the GfK AG Supervisory Board members and the Administrative Board of GfK-Nürnberg e.V. expressed their thanks to the Management Board for its commitment during the merger talks with TNS and the successful operations of the past few months. Dr. Arno Mahlert, up to now the Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of GfK AG, was first appointed to the Board in 2004. Dr. Mahlert was elected as the new Supervisory Board Chairman of GfK AG by a unanimous vote. Stefan Pfander is to become Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Stefan Pfander is the delegate Management Board member of the Supervisory Board of Tchibo GmbH, Supervisory Board member of Beiersdorf AG and Administrative Board member of Barry Callebaut AG. The elections had become necessary due to the resignation of Hajo Riesenbeck as Chairman of the Supervisory Board and President of GfK-Nürnberg e.V., when he stepped down from both boards with effect from September 26 of this year.
The Supervisory Board and Administrative Board of GfK-Nürnberg e.V. would like to express their sincerest thanks to the Management Board and its Chief Executive Officer, Professor Dr. Klaus L. Wübbenhorst, for their successful work and the exceedingly positive development of the GfK Group, particularly in light of the past few eventful months, which have been shaped by the merger activities between GfK and TNS. In addition, there was praise also for the many years of sustained success of the GfK Group – based on the "5 Star Initiative”, which has enshrined the Group’s future strategic plans since 2006.
The GfK Group
The GfK Group is the No. 4 market research organization worldwide. Its activities cover the three business sectors of Custom Research, Retail and Technology, and Media. In financial year 2007, the GfK Group achieved sales of EUR 1,162.1 million. The Group has 115 companies operating in more than 100 countries. Of a total of approximately 9,457 employees (full-time staff, as at June 30, 2008), 81.6% are based outside Germany. For further information, visit our website: www.gfk.com
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