New Chairman & CEO at Bertelsmann

GÜTERSLOH: Thomas Rabe, the CFO at Bertelsmann, will succeed the company’s current chairman and CEO, Hartmut Ostrowski, effective January 1, 2012.

Ostrowski is resigning from the executive board and will move on to the supervisory board. Ostrowski joined Bertelsmann in 1982; he became chairman on January 1, 2008.

Rabe has served as CFO and head of the corporate center since January 1, 2006. Before this he held the same post at the RTL Group since 2000. His successor as CFO will be named at a later date.

Gunter Thielen, the chairman of the supervisory board, said: “Bertelsmann owes Hartmut Ostrowski a great debt of gratitude. He led the company in difficult times. I look forward to continuing to work with him on the supervisory board. The timing of the changeover ensures that the passing of the baton to Thomas Rabe will be handled smoothly.”

Thielen added: “The shareholders and supervisory board wish Thomas Rabe the best of success in his new role. We are sure that in him, we have an entrepreneur at the top who will lend further momentum to Bertelsmann’s growth strategy and future development.”