JENA, Germany & DUBLIN, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--At today’s meeting the Supervisory Board of Carl Zeiss Meditec agreed to the resignation of Dr Michael Kaschke (52) from his position on the Management Board with effect from the end of the Annual General Meeting on 4 March 2010. The Supervisory Board appointed the member of the Management Board Dr Ludwin Monz (46) as the company’s new Chief Executive Officer to succeed Dr Michael Kaschke. Dr Michael Kaschke intends to return as Chairman to the Supervisory Board and will stand for election at the AGM on 4 March 2010.
The US subsidiary Carl Zeiss Meditec Inc., Dublin, CA will be headed by Dr Ralf Kuschnereit, President & CEO with effect from 18 January 2010. Joseph Donahoe will as President Sales Americas continue to be responsible for managing and further expanding sales in the entire Americas region.
Dr Kaschke, then Chairman of the Supervisory Board, assumed the position of Chief Executive Officer of Carl Zeiss Meditec in July 2008 in compliance with Art. 105 of the German Stock Corporation Act. In the face of adverse underlying economic conditions in the past 18 months he directed the medical technology supplier on a successful course with the corporate programme RACE 2010.
“The results achieved impressively demonstrate that it was a wise decision to appoint Dr Kaschke as Chief Executive Officer. He made a decisive impact on the necessary realignment and accelerated growth of Carl Zeiss Meditec. The company currently has numerous innovations in the pipeline, a strong international management team and a growth-oriented organization. We thank Dr Kaschke for the extraordinary commitment. At the same time we welcome Dr Kaschke’s intention to return to his position as Chairman of the Supervisory Board. With over 15 years of experience in medical technology he is a recognised expert and a perfect complement to the Supervisory Board of Carl Zeiss Meditec AG. With Dr Monz as the new Chief Executive Officer we have been able to appoint an internationally experienced successor from our own ranks who stands for innovation and growth. We are confident that he will continue to take Carl Zeiss Meditec along the successful path that has already been adopted,” says Dr Markus Guthoff, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Carl Zeiss AG.
Dr Michael Kaschke, Chief Executive Officer of Carl Zeiss Meditec AG: “I took over the chairmanship of Carl Zeiss Meditec 18 months ago and although it has not been an easy time, I have had the immense pleasure of working with an excellent team for our customers in medical technology. I now intend to accompany the company as Chairman of the Supervisory Board.”
Dr Ludwin Monz has been a member of the Management Board of Carl Zeiss Meditec AG since October 2007. He has been responsible for the largest strategic business unit Ophthalmic Systems. Previous to this, he directed the strategic business unit Microsurgery for six years. During this time he expanded the business unit into a highly profitable part of the company. Several innovative products were launched on the market under his management. Physics and MBA graduate Monz joined the Carl Zeiss Group in 1994 and has been engaged in medical technology since 2000. In addition to various stations in research and development Dr Ludwin Monz held a number of managerial positions.
“I am looking forward to my new role and will continue to pursue the path oriented to sustainable growth that has already been adopted,” says Monz.
The other members of the Management Board of Carl Zeiss Meditec are Dr Christian Müller and Ulrich Krauss.
Brief profile
Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, listed in the TecDAX at the German Stock Exchange (ISIN DE0005313704), is one of the world’s leading medical technology suppliers.
The company markets innovative technologies and application-oriented solutions to enable physicians to improve the quality of life of their patients. For the diagnosis and treatment of eye ailments the company offers all-in-one solutions including implants and consumables.
In the field of microsurgery the company supplies innovative visualisation solutions. Promising future technologies such as intraoperative radiation therapy round off the medical technology portfolio of Carl Zeiss Meditec.
In financial year 2008/09 (30 September) a workforce of about 2,100 generated a turnover of € 640 million. The head office of Carl Zeiss Meditec is at Jena in Germany. In addition to further subsidiaries in Germany over 50% of the company’s employees are located in the USA, Japan, Spain and France.
Thirty-five percent of the Carl Zeiss Meditec shares are in free float. The remaining 65 percent are held by Carl Zeiss, one of the world’s leading groups engaged in the optical and opto-electronics industry. Carl Zeiss offers innovative solutions for the future markets Medical & Research Solutions, Industrial Solutions and Lifestyle Products. The headquarters of Carl Zeiss AG are located at Oberkochen, Germany. In financial year 2008/09 (balance sheet date 30 September) the Group generated sales of about € 2.1 billion. Carl Zeiss employs almost 13,000 persons, over 8,000 of them in Germany.
For further information visit: www.meditec.zeiss.de
Contact:
Carl Zeiss Meditec Jackie Ferreira, 925-557-4488 Senior Director of Marketing Communications j.ferreira@meditec.zeiss.com
