After more than five years of successful leadership Michael Hankel (55), Chief Executive Officer of ZF Lenksysteme GmbH (ZFLS), has decided to move on to new responsibilities at ZF Friedrichshafen AG.
Schwäbisch Gmünd. Michael Hankel was appointed CEO of ZFLS in December 2007. Under his leadership ZFLS increased its sales from 2.6 billion euros in 2007 to approximately 4 billion euros in 2012 and substantially improved its market position throughout the world. Michael Hankel has now been appointed to the Board of Management at ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Here he will head the newly created Passenger Car executive area, comprising the Powertrain Technology and Chassis Technology divisions and the Production Technology department. In addition, Mr. Hankel will head the Electronic Systems business unit.
Michael Hankel will be succeeded by Dr. Peter Ottenbruch, 55, who is currently in charge of Corporate Operations and Technology on the Board of Management at ZF Friedrichshafen AG.
Dr. Peter Ottenbruch
Born in 1957 in Vorst (Krefeld administrative district), Ottenbruch has a doctorate in mechanical engineering. He was Board Chairman of ZF Sachs AG in Schweinfurt from 2007 until his appointment to the Board of Management of ZF Friedrichshafen AG in 2011. Prior to that he headed various departments at Mannesmann Sachs AG, including Car Clutch Systems and Torque Converters. He was in charge of the Powertrain division as a Board member of ZF Sachs AG from 2002 onwards.
ZF Lenksysteme GmbH, a 50:50 joint venture between Robert Bosch GmbH and ZF Friedrichshafen AG, is a specialist and technology leader for steering systems with more than 12,300 employees in 16 locations in eight countries. In 2011, the company achieved a turnover of more than 3.6 billion euros.
