As a management professional with many years of international experience, Gierse will succeed Christophe de Maistre in April 2024
Ratingen, 01 February 2024 – A new Zone President will be responsible for the Germany, Austria and Switzerland region at Schneider Electric from 1 April 2024. Stefan Gierse (45) succeeds Christophe de Maistre, who has held the position since 2019. Gierse, who studied electrical engineering in Erlangen and Toronto, worked for Siemens for almost 20 years before joining Schneider Electric. There, he held various management positions in the areas of product management, sales and business development and was EVP Strategy and Technology at international level, among others. Most recently, he worked as Senior Vice President Global Sales and Marketing in the Factory Automation division. The management professional also has a broad technical background; as a graduate engineer, he has excellent expertise in the fields of mechanical engineering, drive technology, digitalisation and automation. In his new role as Zone President DACH at Schneider Electric, Gierse is responsible in particular for the overarching strategic business direction of the 6,400-strong DACH organisation. The father of two will start at Schneider Electric on 1 February 2024 and will prepare for his new role during a two-month transition phase in close coordination with his predecessor Christophe de Maistre.
Finding the right tone
“As an enthusiastic amateur musician, I know how important it is to hit the right note right from the start. That’s why I want to make the most of the time until April to get to know all the different people at Schneider Electric, our partners and customers as well as possible,” says Stefan Gierse, looking ahead to the start-up phase at his new employer. “Because I have also learnt this from music: the best results are always achieved when you know how to listen to each other and allow and encourage individual creativity and a spirit of innovation at the same pace. This applies to your own company, but also to the economic and social challenges we are currently facing. A sensible approach to issues such as climate change, digital transformation and demographic change requires that we succeed in promoting existing diversity while speaking a common language and acting together. I am very much looking forward to the familiarisation phase with my predecessor Christophe de Maistre.” Christophe de Maistre will remain with Schneider Electric beyond April 2024 with new professional responsibilities.
One of the primary tasks of the new Zone President DACH will be to further develop regional business strategy, expertise and market access in line with Schneider Electric’s corporate philosophy. For almost two decades, this has been dedicated to sustainable management and compliance with the highest ESG standards (Environmental, Social, Governance). For example, the Group’s regularly renewed sustainability targets are to be comprehensively updated in 2025. The relocation of the German headquarters to the new EUREF campus in Düsseldorf, a flagship project for climate-friendly and energy-efficient building operation, planned for autumn 2024, is also part of this sustainability strategy.
