Evelyne Freitag Website

In a Nutshell

Evelyne Freitag is a Non Executive Director and independent Board Advisor with international operational experience in the industrial sector - from healthcare, automotive to fast moving consumer goods, infrastructure and energy, up to pension funds and banks.

As an experienced NED (chairwoman or member), she drives - in addition to the traditional monitoring function - topics such as business model development, governance and efficiency of committee work, risk strategy and sustainable and measurable ESG strategy.
Experienced change agent, she advises as a Board advisor family offices, companies and their executive managers on their international deployment strategies and supports them in their digital and sustainable transformation.

For more than 30 years she has - as a managing director and CFO - controlled billions of sales and was responsible for thousands of employees in companies such as Daimler/Mercedes, Kraft/Mondelez, Pentland, Goodyear-Dunlop, Pfizer and Sanofi.

She publishes articles and guest commentaries in business newspapers and books and gives lectures and keynotes at business conferences (multilingual E/D/F). She also demonstrates social commitment for instance as an advisor to the public and private sectors in her role as French Foreign Trade Advisor in Germany.

Non Executive Director & Board Advisor

SUPERVISORY & ADVISORY BOARDS

Board Advisor Familiy companies & Family Offices since 2022
KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH since 2022
Member of the Supervisory Board, credit and risk committees
IVA Valuation & Advisory AG since 2023
Deputy Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board
HPS Home Power Solutions AG 2022-2023
Member of the Supervirsory Board
Pensionskasse der Hoechst Gruppe VVaG 2017-2021
Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board
Future Capital AG 2017-2021
Member of the Supervisory Board
euromicron AG 2016 -2019
Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board

OTHER ACTIVITIES

French Foreign Trade Advisor since 2019
Member of the German Board
Founder & Head of the French German “Health Expert Group”.
Financial Expert Association (FEA): Member since 2015, Regional Board Director Rhine-Main (up 2019)
European Women on Board (EWOB), member since 2023
German-French Business Club, Member since 2017
HypoVereinsbank: Women’s Advisory Board 2015-2019

MANAGERIAL EXPERIENCE

Sanofi 2017 – 2022
Member of the Executive Board & Chief Financial Officer
Region Germany, Austria, Switzerland
Goodyear Dunlop 2011 – 2017
Director Business Transformation EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa)
Managing Director/Chief Financial Officer Germany, Austria, Switzerland
Gemeinnützige Hertie Stiftung 2009 – 2011
Managing Director of berufundfamilie gGmbH
Pfizer Deutschland GmbH 2002 – 2009
Vice President Finance & Supply Chain
Pentland Deutschland GmbH 1998 – 2001
Managing Director & Chief Financial Officer
Daimler Group 1991 – 1998
Project Manager Smart Car & mobility (Switzerland),
European M&A debis Systemhaus,
Daimler Group Planning & Strategy,
Controlling Mercedes plant Sindelfingen
Kraft Jacobs Suchard, France 1989 – 1991
Controller Confectionery Division

A Selection of Publications see all articles

Director's Akademie - Podcast for Supervisory Boards, 19.01.2023

The supervisory board needs 3D glasses to clearly see hidden risks

We talk about international interdependance and its risks, about opportunities and innovation through experience in a mix of industries, success factors of good committee work, competences in the supervisory board and ethics.
Because in the end the 3D glasses are more like a 3P glasses: Profit, People and Planet!
Supervisory boards must keep an eye on all of these dimensions.

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Finance Magazin, 19.07.2021

Why supervisory boards need to reinvent themselves

The responsibility is broad, the liability sometimes higher than the remuneration: the demands on supervisory boards are increasing. What does this mean for their work? Evelyne Freitag believes that courageous teamwork of specialists is required instead of harmonious nice chats.

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Evelyne Freitag, 21.01.2023

Ode to friendship - 60 years Elysee Treaty are just the beginning and the foundation for the European transformation

Germany, France and all of Europe are facing a variety of challenges. We have to tackle them. And that takes speed, courage and perseverance.
60 years is reason for a really good balance sheet. But they are not the end, it is just the start! 60 years Elysee Treaty are just the beginning and the foundation for the upcoming European transformation!

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REthinking Finance Ausgabe 5/2020, 01.05.2020

Covid-19 as a digitalization booster: challenges and solutions for faster digitalization

“Everyone has to learn how to deal with uncertainty. Keyword “risk management”. It’s not about avoiding risk. On the contrary. We have to take more risks. Resilience as a success factor is becoming part of the new normal.” says Evelyne Freitag

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Wirtschaftswoche, 24.09.2019

An advice to the Generation Y: Don’t ask what you’re allowed to!

Is there a need for a generational battle between young and old on our management floors? It may sound like a revolution and a new beginning, but the battle is unnecessary. Today’s 50-year-olds have a lot of experience with innovations.

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Controlling & Management Review, Fachaufsatz, Springer Verlag, H5/2016 (WHU), 01.01.2016

“Industry 4.0: CFOs as innovation drivers”.

The business world of tomorrow does not necessarily require revolutionary products, but innovations in business models, structures and processes. The greatest innovation potential of companies lies in the operational areas. Who would be better suited to rethink everything and to drive and finance innovation with creative strategies than the CFO?

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The European Financial Review, 21.08.2018

Resisting the Pressure: Evelyne Freitag on stretching the boundaries of CFOs today

Faced with technological advancements and growing responsibilities, CFOs are bracing themselves for more pressure and change ahead. In this interview, we discover new ideas on the roles of CFOs, with new demands on their time, such as digitising critical business activities and managing obligations, in addition to traditional finance duties.

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