Jürgen Erich Schrempp | |
|---|---|
 Jürgen E. Schrempp in 1993 | |
| Born | (1944-09-15)15 September 1944 (age 81) |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Business executive |
| Title | CEO ofDaimler-Benz |
| Term | 1995–2005 |
| Predecessor | Edzard Reuter |
| Successor | Dieter Zetsche |
Jürgen Erich Schrempp (born September 15, 1944, inFreiburg) is the formerCEO of Daimler-Benz from May 1995 to December 31, 2005, which becameDaimlerChrysler, aGerman-American car and truck manufacturer. Following a decision of the board taken on July 28, 2005, he was succeeded on January 1, 2006, byChrysler frontmanDieter Zetsche. Schrempp was the architect of the merger joint venture between Daimler Benz and Chrysler, which ultimately ended in failure when Chrysler was sold in 2007.
Schrempp studied engineering at theUniversity of Applied Sciences Offenburg and did his apprenticeship at Mercedes-Benz. From 1974 to 1980 he served in executive positions at Mercedes-Benz of South Africa. Between 1982 and 1984 he was an executive atEuclid Trucks, returning to Daimler-Benz in 1985.[1][2]
From 1989 to 1995, Schrempp headed the aerospace division of Daimler-Benz, then calledDASA, which isEADS today. DASA acquired theDutch aircraft manufacturerFokker that was already in difficulty in 1993 after it signed a contract stating the intention to take Fokker over on October 30, 1992. Schrempp called Fokker his "love baby".[3]
In 1995, Schrempp was appointed CEO of Daimler-Benz, succeedingEdzard Reuter. On January 22, 1996, after having subsidized the losses of Fokker with billions of Deutsche Marks, Daimler-Benz decided to stop putting more money into Fokker, and the firm subsequently went bankrupt.[4]
During his tenure at Daimler-Benz, Schrempp oversaw the 80% acquisition of theChrysler Corporation in 1998 to become DaimlerChrysler. Schrempp called the merger a "match made in heaven". In addition to the acquisition of Chrysler, Schrempp pursued the acquisition ofMitsubishi Motors as part of his 'Three Pillars' strategy to expand the reach of Daimler-Benz into the major markets of the United States and Asia.
In 2004, the Mitsubishi investment became a liability with the Japanese manufacturer swamped under a mountain of debt and following a refusal by other members of the JapaneseMitsubishikeiretsu to assist Daimler in funding its operation. The German company eventually walked away with substantial losses. On 14 May 2007, Daimler sold 80% of Chrysler to the private equity firm Cerberus.[5]
Under the lead of Schrempp, Mercedes-Benz's 'legendary' reputation for quality suffered,[6] critics alleged the brand "lost its engineering focus and has placed a higher value on cost." Meanwhile, the profits gained from cost-cutting seeped away to loss-making ventures such as theSmart brand and the investments in Chrysler and Mitsubishi[7][8]
On 31 December 2005, Schrempp was succeeded byDieter Zetsche as CEO of Daimler. Although officially a voluntary departure, reports suggested that Schrempp was 'ousted' from his position.[9][10]
Schrempp is a Director ofSouth African Coal, Oil and Gas, andRichemont,Switzerland. Additional engagements include the Chairmanship of United Global Academy - UGA, the advisory board ofDeutsche Bank, the European Advisory Board of Harvard Business School, and the German Council ofINSEAD. He is also on the board ofTransnet.[11][12] He is also aHonorary Consul General for South Africa to the German states ofBaden-Württemberg,Rhineland-Palatinate andSaarland.
He was previously a non-executive director ofVodafone Group plc, after their 2000 take over of Mannesman Group.[13] He is a former member of the Steering Committee of theBilderberg Group.[14]
Schrempp is the recipient of:
Schrempp lives primarily inMunich,Germany and KitzbuehelAustria where his wife, Lydia Schrempp, owns an Italian restaurant. He has been married to Lydia since 2000, with whom he has a daughter, Loana Theresa, (born in 2001) and a son, Luca-Timon, (born in 2005). Schrempp has two sons, Alexander and Marc, from his previous marriage to Renate Lutz, which was ended by Lutz due to Schrempp'sadulterous affair with Lydia, who was hissecretary at the time.[17] When she was his secretary, Schrempp reportedly paid Lydia a 200,000 euro yearly salary, more than double that of other staff in similar positions, after criticism from press, shareholders and Daimler employees Lydia resigned in 2010.[12][18]
As of 2010, Schrempp owns a farm inEastern Transvaal, South Africa.[12]
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