Freelancer profile translated to English.

Description

Facing material decisions that will shape your business for years to come? Need clarity on sustainability requirements, Asia strategies, or technology assessments?

I help CEOs and innovation leaders in Automotive, Tires, and Technical Plastics make the right decisions – before they become costly.

WHAT MAKES ME UNIQUE:

→ Asia Bridge: 4 years on-site (China, Japan, Malaysia), market development, partnerships, teams – experience, not theory

→ Tech Meets Business: PhD in Chemistry + MBA + P&L responsibility – I speak with your engineers and your board

→ Building New: Corporate ventures, scaled startups, new markets developed – setup phases are my element

→ Implementing Sustainability: Making decarbonization and circular economy concrete, not just presenting

PROJECTS & RESULTS:

→ Material Roadmaps: Which materials to invest in, which to phase out

→ Sustainability Roadmaps: Recyclates, CO₂ reduction technically feasible

→ Asia Scouting: Realistic assessment of sourcing, partnerships, risks

→ Technology Due Diligence: Robust decision templates for investors and boards

→ Strategy Sparring: Challenging your concepts, creating clarity

25+ years of experience in leadership roles up to board level. I don't deliver PowerPoint battles, but decisions you can implement.

Languages

English
Native or bilingual
French
Fluent
Spanish
Basic
Chinese
Basic
German
Native or bilingual

Workplace preferences

Can work on-site

Hannover (up to 50km)

Forvia Materi'act
Materi'act Asia General Manager
AUTOMOBILE
January 2025 - Today (1 year and 7 months)
Lyon, France
Mandate to establish Materi'act's operations in China and Japan, building the organization, partnerships, and business activities in sustainable automotive interiors. Regional P&L responsibility (Board level).
• • Define and execute regional strategy and go-to-market for China and Japan, aligned with global decarbonisation and circularity objectives
• • Build organisational structures and cross-functional teams in France, China and Japan, covering business development, R&D, program management and operations
• • Establish partnerships across the value chain (OEMs, Tier-1 s, chemical suppliers, recyclers), enabling local sourcing and supply with low-carbon materials and to secure operational readiness
• • Built and enforced business cases for new initiatives (investment rationale, payback, risk mitigation) to ensure disciplined growth and profitability
• • Develop first business opportunities with major OEMs, ensuring a sustainable order-intake and early portfolio traction
• • Represent Materi'act towards authorities, industry associations and customers, strengthening the brand not only as a sustainability partner in Asia
• • Prepare a long-term footprint and investment roadmap for Asia, balancing capex, risk exposure and regulatory requirements
Asia Market Development Sustainable Materials/Decarbonization Partnerships Across the Value Chain Business Cases and Decisions for New Products and Projects P&L Responsibility
Forvia Materi'act
Director Product Line Surface Materials
January 2023 - January 2025 (2 years)
Lyon, France
Led the global Surface Materials product line, focusing on innovation, partnerships, and sustainability driven technology development.
• • Owned the global product line strategy and roadmap for sustainable surface materials, explicitly linking design targets, cost, and CO₂ value creation
• • Drove portfolio evolution through OEM and partnerships co-development of advanced surfaces and low-carbon material solutions
• • Built and enforced business cases for new initiatives (investment rationale, payback, risk mitigation) to ensure disciplined growth and profitability
• • Identified and evaluated new business and investment opportunities, including circular material concepts and enabling technologies
• • Coordinated global product line teams and partner organizations to maintain consistent roadmaps and disciplined resource allocation across priorities
Continental Surface Solutions –
Head of New Ventures (55 FTE, Budget €8M, P&L)
January 2018 - January 2023 (5 years)
Hanover (a BA of ContiTech, €5.9B sales, 41 k employees)
Responsible for creating and scaling corporate start-ups and innovation partnerships, driving diversification and sales growth beyond the core business. Combined entrepreneurship and risk management and directed public–private partnership (PPP) strategy.
• • Managed a €3M investment in the "Center for Functional Printing Technology", securing 45% PPP funding and opening new business options in printed electronics
• • Built strategic innovation partnerships with industry and academia, steering projects from first idea through negotiation to final agreements
• • Developed and implemented a "smart products" strategy, identifying high-growth opportunities with €100M+ revenue potential
• • Scaled the corporate start-up Bal.On from 4 to 45 employees, targeting €50M sales by 2027, including business model development and industrial scaling