Werner Geissler (born 1953) is a German businessman, with extensive experience in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Japan, Europe and Emerging Markets.Forbes
/ref>Bloomberg BusinessWeek
/ref>Procter & Gamble biography
/ref>IMD biography
/ref>

Biography

Early life

Werner Geissler was born in 1953 in Hachenburg, Heuzert, Germany. After graduation from the Gymnasium Marienstatt in 1972, he joined the Air Force. He received an M.B.A. (Diplom-Kaufmann) from the

University of Cologne The University of Cologne () is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in 1388. It closed in 1798 before being re-established in 1919. It is now one of the largest universities in Germany with around 45,187 students. The Universit ...

in 1979.

Career

He joined

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/con ...

as Assistant Brand Manager after graduation in 1979. He held positions of increasing scope and responsibility in Marketing/Brand Management (e.g. BM for Mr. Proper, Pampers) before becoming Marketing Director in Holland and Germany. In 1991, he was promoted to General Manager of a new Cosmetics and Fragrances business unit before becoming Vice President of Fine Fragrances for the Western Hemisphere, based in Santa Monica/California. Following stints as Vice President for the Laundry, Cleaning & Paper business in Germany as well as subsequently for P&G's operation in Turkey/Caucasia/Central Asia, Geissler became President of P&G's business in Northeast Asia in 2001. In 2004 he was promoted to Group President for the Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa business unit. In July 2007, he became Vice Chairman in charge of Global Operations with responsibility for all country and manufacturing operations globally and served in this capacity until his retirement in January 2015, after almost 36 years of service. Post-retirement, Geissler has been an Operating Partner at the Private Equity Firm Advent International. He is also an active investor in several Start ups covering a broad range of industries. Amongst those are Pedilay (a novel foot care product); Spindiag (a new-to-the-world approach to rapid diagnosis of infectious diseases) and HealthVector, a unique health tracking and medical record administration tool based in Boston. He sits on the Board of Directors of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, Philip Morris International, and he is a member of the

World Business Council for Sustainable Development The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) is a CEO-led organization of over 225 international companies. The council is also connected to 60 national and regional business councils and partner organizations. Its origins da ...

. He has been an Advisor to the Governor of the

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. He has served on the Supervisory Board of the

International Institute for Management Development International Institute for Management Development (IMD) is an independent academic institute with campuses in Lausanne, Switzerland and Singapore. IMD is known for its executive education and its proximity to business. In 2024, it named David B ...

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

from 2007 to 2017, on the Management Board of GS 1 from 2008 to 2015, and on the Summit Committee of the

Consumer Goods Forum The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) is a global, industry-led network that brings together over 400 member companies, including retailers, manufacturers, and other stakeholders from 70 countries in the consumer goods industry. It focuses on driving posi ...

.GS1 Governance
/ref> He is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from the

International University in Geneva The International Institute in Geneva (IIG), formerly known as International University in Geneva (IUN or IUG), founded in 1997, is a private business school

. Geissler has also served on the BoD of economiesuisse. In 2005, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the International University in Geneva and in 2013, Geissler was appointed Visiting Professor at China Executive Leadership Academy in Pudong/Shanghai (CELAP).

Personal life

Geissler and his family have lived in places like Frankfurt, Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Istanbul, Kobe, Geneva and Cincinnati. He is now based in Munich. In 2012, he served as International Chair of the

World Choir Games The World Choir Games (formerly named the Choir Olympics) is the largest global choral festival and competition. Organised by the Interkultur Foundation for choirs from all over the world, regardless of their country of origin, race, genre of mu ...

. In 2018, he served as "Schirmherr"of the 750th Anniversary of his birthplace, Heuzert/Westerwald. He is married to his wife Sabine and has 2 daughters, Anna and Lena.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geissler, Wener Businesspeople from Rhineland-Palatinate Procter & Gamble people 1953 births Living people Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company people Businesspeople from Cincinnati People from Westerwaldkreis German expatriates in the United States Expatriate businesspeople in the United States University of Cologne alumni