Stefan Sommer (born January 7, 1963, in Münster,

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

) is a German engineer who was the chief executive officer of

ZF Friedrichshafen AG ZF Friedrichshafen AG, also known as ZF Group, originally ''Zahnradfabrik Friedrichshafen'' (), and commonly abbreviated to ZF, is a Germany, German technology manufacturing company that supplies systems for passenger cars, commercial vehicles ...

, also known a
ZF Group
from 2012 until 2017.

Early life and education

Sommer studied

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

Ruhr University Bochum The Ruhr University Bochum (, ) is a public research university located in the southern hills of the central Ruhr area, Bochum, Germany. It was founded in 1962 as the first new public university in Germany after World War II. Instruction began ...

, specialising in automation. There he earned an engineering doctorate while holding a professorship in automatic control engineering.

Career

Sommer began his professional career in 1994 as a development

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

at ITT Automotive Group Europe GmbH in Frankfurt am Main. In 1997, he moved to

Continental Automotive Systems Continental Automotive Systems (CAS), founded in 1906 by Alfred Teves, a division of the German Continental AG, was a brake and electronics supplier to the automotive industry, supplying systems, components, electronics, lithium-ion batteries ...

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, beginning as director of electronics & sensor development. After occupying several positions at Continental, the last of which being senior vice-president of EBS Customer Center, Sommer moved to what was then named ZF Sachs AG in Schweinfurt in 2008, whereupon he joined its board of directors in charge of chassis operations. In the summer of 2010, the supervisory board of ZF Sach’s parent company,

ZF Friedrichshafen ZF Friedrichshafen AG, also known as ZF Group, originally ''Zahnradfabrik Friedrichshafen'' (), and commonly abbreviated to ZF, is a Germany, German technology manufacturing company that supplies systems for passenger cars, commercial vehicles ...

AG, appointed Sommer to its executive board in Friedrichshafen, where he assumed responsibility for materials management. From 1 January 2012, Sommer also served as deputy chief executive officer of ZF Group, before becoming Hans-Georg Härter’s successor as chief executive officer of ZF Friedrichshafen AG. On 7 December 2017 Sommer quit the CEO position of ZF. Since 2019, Sommer has been a member of the board member of

Volkswagen Volkswagen (VW; )English: , . is a German automotive industry, automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Established in 1937 by German Labour Front, The German Labour Front, it was revitalized into the global brand it ...

, with responsibility for procurement.

Other activities

Knorr-Bremse Knorr-Bremse AG is a German manufacturer of braking systems for rail and commercial vehicles that has operated since 1905. Other products in the company's portfolio include intelligent door systems, control components, air conditioning system ...

, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2021)Martin-W. Buchenau (March 31, 2021)
Ex-ZF-Chef Sommer wird Aufsichtsrat beim Konkurrenten Knorr-Bremse
�''

Handelsblatt The ''Handelsblatt'' (literally "commerce paper" in English) is a German-language business newspaper published in Düsseldorf by Handelsblatt Media Group, formerly known as Verlagsgruppe Handelsblatt. History and profile ''Handelsblatt'' was es ...

''.

References

ZF Board of Management profile - Dr Stefan Sommer

Press Profile - Dr Stefan Sommer

External links

*http://www.oemoffhighway.com/press_release/10709849/zf-reports-its-2011-results *http://www.4wheelsnews.com/stefan-sommer-is-the-new-ceo-of-zf-friedrichshafen/ * http://www.datamonitor.com/store/News/zf_names_new_ceo?productid=D560B3DA-8B34-4057-AE58-3298674C682D {{DEFAULTSORT:Sommer, Stefan 1963 births Living people