Gunter Hardt - Managing Director

Q: Where is Gunter based?

Gunter is based in Berlin, Germany .

Q: What languages does Gunter speak?

Gunter speaks the following languages: German (Native), Spanish (Advanced), French (Advanced), English (Intermediate) .

Q: How many years of experience does Gunter have?

Gunter has at least 23 years of experience. During this time, Gunter has worked in at least 9 different roles and for 10 different companies . The average length of individual experience is 2 years and 4 months . Note that Gunter may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

Q: What is Gunter's latest experience?

Gunter's most recent position is Managing Director at DermaKids e.V. .

Q: What companies has Gunter worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Gunter has worked for DermaKids e.V. and Volleyball Bundesliga (VBL) GmbH .

Q: Which industries is Gunter most experienced in?

Gunter is most experienced in industries like Sport and Recreation , Healthcare , and Government and Public Administration . Gunter also has some experience in Retail , Aerospace and Defense , Media, and Entertainment and Publishing .

Q: Which business areas is Gunter most experienced in?

Gunter is most experienced in business areas like Marketing , Sales , and Operations . Gunter also has some experience in Customer Service , Information Technology (IT) , and Strategy and Planning .

Q: Which industries has Gunter worked in recently?

Gunter has recently worked in industries like Healthcare and Sport and Recreation .

Q: Which business areas has Gunter worked in recently?

Gunter has recently worked in business areas like Marketing , Information Technology (IT) , and Strategy and Planning .

Recommended expert

Berlin, Germany

Experience

Jun 2023 - Present

2 years 9 months

Kleinmachnow, Germany

Managing Director

DermaKids e.V.

Developed the association strategically, content-wise and organizationally and represented it internally and externally
Digitalized and expanded fundraising (traffic fine marketing & digital donation marketing) and marketing areas: strategic and operational digital/analog marketing and communication planning, social media, PR including budgeting and mailings
Took full responsibility for member communication and administration, and for creating activity reports, grant and donation confirmations
Conducted market analyses and implemented software for management, fundraising and CRM, including AI integration/use
Actively maintained, expanded and acquired new partners, sponsors and supporters

Apr 2020 - Sep 2022

2 years 6 months

Berlin, Germany

Managing Director Marketing, CMO

Volleyball Bundesliga (VBL) GmbH

Developed and implemented a growth strategy for the VBL as the German umbrella association of all 75+ clubs in the 1st & 2nd Bundesliga in the DACH region, including brand repositioning and increasing brand awareness; revenue responsibility: €2M
Took full responsibility for the marketing/communication (media, PR) and sales departments with 6 full-time employees
Developed and implemented a holistic umbrella brand strategy: new marketing and sales strategy with short- and long-term goals, new brand principles, vision, mission, corporate design update, website relaunch
Created a new online and offline B2B2C marketing and sales roadmap in coordination with all 20+ Bundesliga clubs to win new sponsors
Restructured content marketing and executed multi-stage growth mindset campaigns to differentiate the men’s and women’s leagues: B2B +970% LinkedIn followers, B2C +580% Instagram and Facebook followers within 12 months, generated +810% B2B leads on LinkedIn in 8 months
Developed and executed a new media strategy: interactive live broadcasts of the men’s Bundesliga on Twitch and women’s Bundesliga on SPORT1 on linear TV
Implemented CRM (HubSpot): built over 100,000 contacts with new content formats and message/email types per month
Led performance marketing: SEM (SEO/SEA), display, affiliate, email, social media including setup and analysis of all metrics and KPIs
Oversaw the development and launch of custom mobile club apps with bFAN Sports for all 1st league clubs to improve visibility and attractiveness for sponsors

Jun 2016 - Apr 2020

3 years 11 months

Berlin, Germany

Head of Sales & Marketing

German Red Cross, Berlin Branch

Managed operating units/business divisions (4 team leaders + 40 full-time employees): customer service, emergency call service including 24-hour hotline, meal delivery, health programs, medical aids; revenue responsibility: €11M
Developed and implemented financial performance metrics and reports (monthly, quarterly, annually) to assess profitability and track performance against budget and goals
Introduced a CRM system and created a data-driven customer acquisition strategy: increased revenue in meal delivery and emergency call services by 11–18% annually by focusing on lead generation via social media
Relaunched the meal delivery online shop; SEO/SEA increased monthly revenue by 10–31%
Designed and executed various cross-channel campaigns (radio, OOH, print, online) and continuously improved email, search engine and social media marketing, website and landing page optimization to generate leads
Restructured customer service: replaced generalists with dedicated specialist teams for specific customer groups, resulting in higher customer satisfaction and stronger staff retention
Developed new service standards (SLAs) and quality control processes that improved productivity and reduced complaints by 48%; increased NPS to 60
Optimized processes and introduced structured employee reviews to improve performance, employee satisfaction, onboarding and customer satisfaction

Nov 2015 - May 2016

7 months

Berlin, Germany

Special Olympics

Optimized online and offline marketing: website, corporate design manuals, media and ad planning (print, digital, OOH, radio, email, social media)
Led acquisition of supporters and sponsorship partners for the National Summer Games in Hannover 2016

May 2013 - Dec 2013

8 months

Berlin, Germany

Senior Manager Digital Marketing

Axel Springer Media Impact

Key Account Manager for transfermarkt.de: increased digital ad revenue by 60% to €2.5M YoY through creative marketing initiatives
Planned, executed and analyzed display and mobile campaigns for existing clients in close collaboration with digital marketing, ad technology and campaign management

Nov 2006 - May 2013

6 years 7 months

Berlin, Germany

Senior Marketing Manager

Sportfive, Team Hertha BSC

Creation of sponsorship and hospitality concepts and annual marketing plans, including managing and evaluating all online/offline marketing activities and campaigns (budget responsibility ≥ €1.5M/year) to support sales and activation
Enhancement and relaunch of the B2B online business platform hertha-vip.de (CMS: Typo3), including a biweekly VIP newsletter: avg. 32% open rate, 7–21% conversion rate
Concept and implementation of the CSR initiative Berlin Friends (2008); acquisition of 2 new partners with a revenue increase of €0.5M within one year
Establishment of hotel partnerships (Grand Hyatt, Steigenberger, Novotel, A-ROSA)
Optimization of online, email, video, newsletter, and search engine marketing, as well as execution of cross- and up-selling campaigns
Planning and execution of events for existing customer retention and new customer acquisition: football and golf tournaments, New Year receptions, trade shows, fireside chats, etc.

May 2005 - Nov 2006

1 year 7 months

Herzogenaurach, Germany

Project Manager "Inside Running Tour"

Adidas/cip, Handelsmarketing

Coordination of the Inside Running Tour in Germany-Austria-Switzerland with comprehensive sales and marketing support for key accounts (Sportscheck, Engelhorn, Intersport, etc.)
Management of 50 events per year with teams of up to 20 product trainers to gather consumer/shopper insights, perform running analysis, and increase sales of running products (shoes & apparel): local sales increases of up to +340% per event

Jun 2004 - Dec 2004

7 months

Berlin, Germany

Marketing/Communications MB Trucks (Internship)

Mercedes-Benz (DCVD)

Jul 2001 - Mar 2002

9 months

Blankenfelde-Mahlow, Germany

Human Resources Marketing (Internship)

Rolls-Royce Deutschland

Jul 1992 - Jul 1996

4 years 1 month

Berlin, Germany

Police Officer (Intermediate Service)

Polizei Berlin

Industries Experience

See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time. Longer bars indicate deeper hands-on experience, while shorter ones reflect targeted or project-based work.

Experienced in Sport (11 years), Healthcare (6.5 years), Government and Administration (4 years), Retail (1.5 years), Media and Entertainment (0.5 years), and Automotive (0.5 years).

Sport

Healthcare

Government and Administration

Retail

Media and Entertainment

Automotive

Business Areas Experience

The graph below provides a cumulative view of the freelancer's experience across multiple business areas, calculated from completed and active engagements. It highlights the areas where the freelancer has most frequently contributed to planning, execution, and delivery of business outcomes.

Experienced in Marketing (19.5 years), Sales (15.5 years), Customer Service (4 years), Operations (4 years), Information Technology (2.5 years), and Strategy (2.5 years).

Marketing

Sales

Customer Service

Operations

Information Technology

Strategy

Summary

20+ years of professional experience: marketing, sales & community building in agencies/corporations/SMEs – focus: B2B2C; 6+ years in leadership roles; proven success in digitalization, brand building and business development; team responsibility up to 4 direct reports/40 FTE, C-level
Team player with experience building, leading and developing high-performing multicultural teams
Creative leader with a positive mindset and strong customer & service orientation
Industry experience: sports (10+ years), healthcare (6+ years), e-commerce (4+ years)
Experience in brand management for fast-growing companies and product portfolios (brand setup/expansion) and in strategic planning, implementation and management of multi-channel marketing concepts, projects and campaigns
10+ years of experience in strategic & operational online marketing: performance marketing, marketing automation, SEO/SEA, A/B testing, email newsletters, content marketing, social media, subscription marketing, CX/UX and funnel optimization, lead generation, CRM, affiliate

Skills

Positive Leadership And Motivation Skills
Goal And Result Orientation - Growth Mindset
Creative Communication And Problem-solving Skills
Relationship And Conflict Management
Digital Marketing & Sales
Ms Office
Seo/sea
Hubspot
Wordpress/typo3
Google Marketing Platform
Google Analytics
Semrush
Linkedin

Languages

German

Native

Spanish

Advanced

French

Advanced

English

Intermediate

Education

Oct 2012 - Jun 2015

Deutsche Dialogmarketing Akademie (DDA)

Certified Online Marketing Specialist (BVDW), European Diploma in Interactive Marketing · Online Marketing · Berlin, Germany · 1.6 (Good)

May 2001 - Aug 2001

Mikkeli Polytechnic

International Management, E-Commerce · Mikkeli, Finland

Oct 1997 - Jun 2003

Berlin School of Economics (Fachhochschule für Wirtschaft, FHW)

Diploma in Economics (major: Marketing) · Economics · Berlin, Germany · 1.7 (Good)

...and 1 more

Certifications & licenses

SPOAC Excellence Program-Internationalization

SPOAC by WHU

Social Media Marketing Course

HubSpot Academy

GDPR: Data Protection in Marketing and Advertising

TÜV Nord

Squared Online: Digital Marketing & Leadership

Google & Avado

Negotiation Techniques, Intercultural Training

Springer Akademie

Profile

Created

December 2023

Last Update

May 2025

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have questions? Here you can find further information.

Where is Gunter based?

Gunter is based in Berlin, Germany.

What languages does Gunter speak?

Gunter speaks the following languages: German (Native), Spanish (Advanced), French (Advanced), English (Intermediate).

How many years of experience does Gunter have?

Gunter has at least 23 years of experience. During this time, Gunter has worked in at least 9 different roles and for 10 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 2 years and 4 months. Note that Gunter may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

What roles would Gunter be best suited for?

Based on recent experience, Gunter would be well-suited for roles such as: Managing Director, Managing Director Marketing, CMO, Head of Sales & Marketing.

What is Gunter's latest experience?

Gunter's most recent position is Managing Director at DermaKids e.V..

What companies has Gunter worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Gunter has worked for DermaKids e.V. and Volleyball Bundesliga (VBL) GmbH.

Which industries is Gunter most experienced in?

Gunter is most experienced in industries like Sport and Recreation, Healthcare, and Government and Public Administration. Gunter also has some experience in Retail, Aerospace and Defense, Media, and Entertainment and Publishing.

Which business areas is Gunter most experienced in?

Gunter is most experienced in business areas like Marketing, Sales, and Operations. Gunter also has some experience in Customer Service, Information Technology (IT), and Strategy and Planning.

Which industries has Gunter worked in recently?

Gunter has recently worked in industries like Healthcare and Sport and Recreation.

Which business areas has Gunter worked in recently?

Gunter has recently worked in business areas like Marketing, Information Technology (IT), and Strategy and Planning.

What is Gunter's education?

Gunter holds a Bachelor in Online Marketing from Deutsche Dialogmarketing Akademie (DDA) and a Bachelor in Economics from Berlin School of Economics (Fachhochschule für Wirtschaft, FHW).

Does Gunter have any certificates?

Gunter has 5 certificates. Among them, these include: SPOAC Excellence Program-Internationalization, Social Media Marketing Course, and GDPR: Data Protection in Marketing and Advertising.

What is the availability of Gunter?

Gunter is immediately available full-time for suitable projects.

What is the rate of Gunter?

Gunter's rate depends on the specific project requirements. Please use the Meet button on the profile to schedule a meeting and discuss the details.