The Supervisory Board of Continental AG resolved to create the new Executive Board function “Integrity and Law,” which will be headed by Olaf Schick. He has been appointed to Continental’s Executive Board for a three-year period effective July 1, 2023, expanding the board to six members.
Schick will be responsible for the central areas Group Law and Intellectual Property, Group Compliance, Group Internal Audit, Group Quality Management and the new area Group Risks and Controls. Until he starts his new role, these areas will remain the responsibility of the respective board members.
“We are consolidating the responsibility for law, compliance and risk management under one Executive Board function. In doing so, we are focusing even more intensively on these areas and underscoring their importance against the backdrop of increasing global requirements,” said Prof. Wolfgang Reitzle, chairman of the Supervisory Board, after the Supervisory Board meeting on Wednesday in Hanover, Germany, adding: “In Olaf Schick, we have gained an internationally experienced leader. He is an excellent fit because of his expertise in setting up a modern, global compliance and risk management system and conducting internal investigations, coupled with his extensive operational and governance experience.”
At the same time, Reitzle said: “Nikolai Setzer laid the crucial foundation for Group Compliance as well as Group Law and Intellectual Property, strengthening integrity and compliance and paving the way for today’s decision.”
“I am delighted to welcome Olaf Schick to our Executive Board team. With his experience and expertise, he will be instrumental in further strengthening integrity and law at Continental. Together we will set the highest standards in these areas,“ said Nikolai Setzer, chairman of Continental’s Executive Board.
Olaf Schick is currently chief financial officer of Mercedes-Benz Group China, a position he has held since July 2020. From 2017 to 2020 he was chief compliance officer at Daimler AG. Before that he held various positions within the company in the areas of law, mergers and acquisitions, and finance, and as a lawyer. He was born in 1972 in Tübingen, Germany, is married and has two children.
The Executive Board of Continental AG will comprise the following six members from July 1, 2023:
- Nikolai Setzer, chairman of the Executive Board and chairman of the Automotive Board (appointed until March 2024)
- Katja Dürrfeld, member of the Executive Board, responsible for Finance, Controlling and IT (appointed until December 2024)
- Dr. Ariane Reinhart, member of the Executive Board, responsible for Human Relations and Sustainability (appointed until September 2025)
- Christian Kötz, member of the Executive Board, responsible for the Tires group sector and Group Purchasing (appointed until April 2027)
- Philip Nelles, member of the Executive Board, responsible for the ContiTech group sector (appointed until May 2024)
- Olaf Schick, member of the Executive Board, responsible for Integrity and Law (appointed until June 2026)
Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation. In 2021, Continental generated sales of €33.8 billion and currently employs more than 190,000 people in 58 countries and markets. On October 8, 2021, the company celebrated its 150th anniversary.