Oliver Zipse

Oliver Zipse (born 7 February 1964) is a German manager who has been serving as Chairman of the Board of Management (CEO) of BMW since 16 August 2019.

Oliver Zipse
Born (1964-02-07) 7 February 1964
Heidelberg, West Germany
NationalityGerman
EducationDiplom in mechanical engineering
Alma materTechnische Universität Darmstadt
OccupationChairman of the Board of Management BMW Group

Early life and education

Zipse graduated from high school in Bensheim in 1983. He studied computer science and mathematics at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City from 1983 to 1985 without obtaining a degree. In 1985 he switched to mechanical engineering at the Technische Universität Darmstadt and graduated in 1991 with a degree in mechanical engineering.[1][2][3] In 1999 he also graduated from the Kellogg-WHU Executive MBA Program which is a joint MBA degree from Kellogg School of Management, USA and WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management, Germany.[4]

Career

Zipse spent his entire professional life at BMW AG. He joined the company in 1991[5] as a trainee in development, technical planning and production. From 1992 to 1994, he worked as a project engineer in technology development. From 1994 to 2006, he held various leadership positions in development, production and production planning in Munich and South Africa.[6] From 2007 to 2008 he was the plant manager at the Mini-plant Oxford.[7] From 2009 to 2012, he was head of technical planning before becoming head of group planning and production strategy from 2012 to May 2015.

On May 13, 2015, he was appointed to the board of management of BMW AG, succeeding former chairman Harald Krüger; Zipse moved up to that position from a management role in product strategy and running the Mini assembly plant in England.[8] His primary responsibility in that board role was for production.[9] One news report summarized his achievement as: "Under Zipse's watch, BMW's efficient production network, which he expanded in Hungary, China and the U.S., has helped the company deliver industry-leading profit margins despite its relatively small scale".[10]

On July 18, 2019, Zipse was appointed chairman of the Board (CEO), effective 16 August 2019. He was described by Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the supervisory board, as "a decisive strategic and analytical leader".[11][12][13]

Other activities

Positions

Zipse has announced BMW’s increase in their joint venture with BMW Brilliance in China.[18] He supports BMW’s expansions towards e-mobility production capacities, stating: "In the future, every BMW Group plant in Europe will be equipped to produce electrified as well as conventional vehicles."[19]

In regard to electro mobility, Zipse has been an advocate of as much in-house competencies as possible, in order to reduce the risk of job losses with the expected future production fluctuations during the transition time from classical gas and diesel towards electronic model lines.[20]

Zipse is an advocate of experimenting and pioneering new technologies within the BMW group. Supporting the use of exoskeleton vests for workers at BMW's plant in Spartanburg, he stated: "We take out all opportunities to try something new, which we haven’t done so far. If the idea works in Spartanburg, we go somewhere else."[21]

Personal life

Zipse is the brother of the chemist Hendrik Zipse, who researches and teaches at the LMU Munich as a Professor of Organic Chemistry.[22]

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References
  1. "Oliver Zipse". BMW AG. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
  2. Curriculum vitae of Oliver Zipse
  3. "BMW taps factory man Zipse as CEO". Automotive News. 2019-07-18. Retrieved 2019-07-27.
  4. "Oliver Zipse". Retrieved 2019-07-23.
  5. Online, FOCUS. "BMW macht Oliver Zipse zum neuen Produktionsvorstand". FOCUS Online (in German). Retrieved 2018-10-29.
  6. "BMW names ex-Mini plant boss Zipse as production chief". Automotive News. 2015-03-15. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
  7. "New boss has plans for BMW plant". Oxford Mail. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
  8. "BMW's new CEO brings steeliness to chart electric-car course". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  9. "Factory strategist Oliver Zipse offers BMW a bold way forward". Auto News. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  10. "BMW picks 'decisive' Zipse as CEO". Automotive News Europe. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  11. "BMW's new CEO brings steeliness to chart electric-car course". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  12. "BMW promotes Oliver Zipse to CEO". Reuters. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  13. "Oliver Zipse appointed new Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG". www.press.bmwgroup.com. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
  14. Board Baden-Badener Unternehmer-Gespräche (BBUG).
  15. Board of Directors European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).
  16. Members European Round Table of Industrialists.
  17. Managing Board & Presiding Board German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA).
  18. "BMW erhöht Batteriekapazitäten in China "deutlich" - ecomento.de". ecomento.de (in German). 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  19. Gilboy, James. "BMW Announces Construction of $1.17 Billion Factory in Hungary". The Drive. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  20. "Der BMW der Zukunft aus Niederbayern". ovb-online.de (in German). 2017-05-03. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  21. "'Iron Man' vests aid BMW assembly workers - Levitate". Levitate. 2017-10-28. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  22. "Prof. Dr. Hendrik Zipse". LMU. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
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