Wolfgang G.
Head of Communications and Marketing (Interim)
Experience
Interim Manager for Communications and Corporate Marketing
SHK Deutschland (BME SHK Deutschland GmbH, wholesale sanitary, heating, air conditioning)
Built and managed communications and corporate marketing in the change and restructuring process (6 months).
Head of the Central Marketing and Communications Division (interim mandate)
Lobbe Holding GmbH & Co KG (environment and waste management)
Built and led the central marketing and communications division for the mid-sized group (21 months).
Head of Central Corporate Communications and Marketing (interim mandate)
Brose Fahrzeugteile SE
Managed and realigned the central corporate communications and marketing division (7 months + consulting).
Interim Manager for Change Communication and Stakeholder Management
Schwarz Group (incl. Lidl, Kaufland)
- Set up change communication and stakeholder management for the digitization and innovation strategy.
- Raised the group's profile in the media through press relations and media campaigns as well as with internal stakeholders.
- Built IT communication (12 months).
Change and Communications Manager (interim mandate)
Deutsche Bahn Fernverkehr AG
- Managed change and communications in the digital transformation of operations (top digitization project).
- Built IT and CIO communications as a line function (14 months).
Change and Communications Manager (Interim Assignment)
Fiducia & GAD IT AG (now "Atruvia")
Change and communications management in post-merger integration, guiding digital transformation, team development (3 months, then consulting).
Project management team member and Head of Change & Communications (Interim Assignment)
GaVI Society for Applied Insurance Informatics GmbH (IT company for public insurers)
- Project management team member and Head of Change & Communications in the company's separation process.
- Strategy and concept development, operational communications management, team development, leadership coaching (over 2 years).
Change and communications support (Interim Assignment)
Nestlé Germany AG
Change and communications support for the restructuring of the entire sales division and the creation of a new sales company (10 months, then 1 year consulting).
Interim Manager Repositioning & Change
MIAG C.V.
Repositioning the Metro Group’s global finance company: strategy, concept and implementation of a change program for the international repositioning of the subsidiary in financial supply chain management for industrial clients, externally and internally (1 year).
Interim Executive and Advisor | Communications & Marketing at C-Level
WordsValues Griepentrog Interim Management and Communications Consulting
Focused C-Level interim roles in demanding contexts and companies (Schwarz Group, Metro Group, Deutsche Bahn, Nestlé, Brose, and others)
Operational and strategic responsibility: crisis/reputation management, change programs, internal/external communications
Leadership and line management responsibilities with measurable added value (e.g. optimized processes, increased credibility, stakeholder access)
Communications audits & due diligence: holistic analysis and robust strategy development
Topics: digital transformation, sustainability, M&A communication, sales communications, cultural change
Head of Corporate Communications Department and Head of Group PR
METRO Group
Built and managed the national and international corporate PR and corporate marketing. Led a department team of 7 staff, managed agency teams (around 50 staff).
- Responsible for strategy and implementation of all national and international PR, communication, and marketing activities at the corporate level as part of 360° stakeholder communication
- Press and media relations (print, TV, radio, online) in selected areas (e.g., food, CSR, and political topics)
- Staging press- and media-effective themed campaigns and initiatives (including the technology campaign "Future Store Initiative", the Public Health campaign "Good for You")
- Corporate publishing, responsible for all corporate publications, websites, and digital media (including development of the multiple award-winning "Metro Retail Encyclopedia")
- Executive and CEO communications including media trainings
- Communications for international offices and sales lines
- Planning and organizing crisis communications in international structures
- Building and developing the corporate brand "METRO Group"
External Press Officer and PR Manager (Interim Assignment)
Philipp Holzmann AG
- Global corporate and financial communications with a focus on business and financial media as well as regional broadcasters.
- Creation of all corporate publications (including project management of annual reports).
- Development of corporate marketing measures for 360° stakeholder management.
- Internal crisis and change communications.
Consultant for PR, Communication, and Marketing as well as Interim Manager
Dr. Wolfgang Griepentrog Corporate Communications
Media relations, crisis communications, financial communications, change communications, corporate marketing, identity management.
Major assignments (sometimes parallel to the Interim Holzmann assignment) included:
- Bayer AG: youth marketing
- BKK Philipp Holzmann (now: Salus BKK): press and marketing communications
- VW gedas: marketing consulting
- DGZ/DekaBank: external and internal merger communications
- German Accounting Standards Committee (DRSC): press and PR work, building a media-effective profile
- Alexander Demuth (agency): Interim Senior Consultant for top clients in banking, real estate, logistics
- Larger Volksbanken (e.g., Berliner Voba, Voba Bonn Rhein-Sieg): marketing, financial and crisis PR, merger communications, annual reports
Senior Consultant in Management Consulting
GenoConsult / Cooperative Association Frankfurt
PR and marketing consulting for bank boards and marketing managers as well as association PR.
- Development and implementation of integrated press, PR and marketing concepts
- Advising and coaching board members and executives
- Crisis communications for large cooperative banks, developing structures and guidelines, training and coaching
- Merger communications (supporting multiple bank mergers)
- Corporate publishing and annual reports (overall project management for multiple clients each)
- Designing and executing nationwide top events (e.g., "Berlin-Brandenburg Talks", "Economic Days")
Account manager and concept developer, most recently as Creative Director and Senior Consultant for a trade show organizer
Various South German Advertising and PR Agencies
Clients: Nuremberg Trade Fair, Kabi Pharmacia, Büttner-Frank, the City of Schwabach, Popp Lighting and Switch Technology, E-Plus Telecom, Wafios Machine Works, Groz-Beckert, Kern-Liebers, among others.
Crisis Communication (Interim Assignment)
Esprit Holding
Crisis communication and brand relaunch in the media, financial markets and internally (9 months, consulting).
Interim Manager Communications and Lobbying
Metro Group
Execution of association policy mandates, communications and lobbying in committees, politics, trade fairs and in the media (7 months).
Summary
As an independent interim manager at C-level I combine 30 years of communication and marketing experience with operational leadership in temporary crisis, transformation and digitization projects.
I help established and growth-oriented companies – from family businesses to DAX corporations – in critical situations with structured, credible and action-oriented communication:
- Crisis & reputation management (e.g. scandal, business distress, quality incident, restructuring)
- Change & culture processes (e.g. M&A, digital transformation)
- Corporate, CEO & stakeholder communication, stakeholder alignment
- Strategic internal + external communication
My mission: ensure communication capability – and as a temporary leader create sustainable impact for top management and the corporate brand. So that leadership remains effective.
Languages
Education
University of Vienna
PhD · Linguistics · Vienna, Austria
Free University of Berlin; Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg
Master of Arts · Comparative Linguistics · Erlangen, Germany
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