New board mandate at Deutsche Post DHL Group: Jürgen Gerdes responsible for Corporate Incubations

Jürgen Gerdes (53), currently heading the Post - eCommerce - Parcel division at Deutsche Post DHL Group, takes charge of the newly created board mandate for Corporate Incubations, effective immediately.

In this new board position Gerdes is tasked with using his proven experience in advancing agile developments and successful market rollout of new customer oriented services and solutions. The Group aims at even better preparing for new opportunities and challenges arising in the areas of customer experience, sustainable logistics and automation.

Gerdes very successfully led the Post - eCommerce - Parcel division for more than a decade. Under his leadership the transformation of Deutsche Post into a customer-oriented, innovative and successful provider of postal and parcel services has been propelled with foresight and vigor. In recent years he drove the swift internationalization of the eCommerce business of the PeP division in Europe, Asia and the Americas.

Pending the appointment of a new Head of the PeP division, Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL Group, will take on corresponding responsibilities in a dual role.

With the creation of the board mandate for Corporate Incubations the Group is also preparing for the acceleration of the success story of the StreetScooter - the electric delivery van.  Since the project start in 2011 a unique family of electric vehicles has been created that includes besides delivery vans also e-bikes and e-trikes. From within the Group and together with partners Corporate Incubations will dynamically further advance the technological development as well as the commercialization of the StreetScooter product family.

The new Board department of Deutsche Post DHL Group will also act as an incubator for mobility solutions, digital platforms and automation. To this end existing new business models of Deutsche Post DHL Group and related technological innovations will be transferred to the new department. At the same time Corporate Incubations will inspire and drive innovative business ventures originating from within the Group or from cooperation with external partners. The build-up of the new Board department will take place in the coming weeks.

“Jürgen Gerdes led the division Post - eCommerce - Parcel for more than a decade very successfully and thus made a significant contribution to the achievement of the Group’s strategic targets. I am convinced that in his new role he will provide important perspectives for the future of our business”, said Wulf von Schimmelmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

“In our Group Jürgen Gerdes is a role model for entrepreneurial spirit, innovative foresight and business success. He has triggered the development of the StreetScooter when e-mobility was not yet a common theme, including, a whole range of customer-oriented innovations such as in the area of e-commerce, which reflect his drive. With his experience, his energy and his inspiration Jürgen will give our Group decisive stimulus for new business opportunities”, said Frank Appel, CEO Deutsche Post DHL Group.

“I have dedicated my whole professional career so far to providing maximum customer value and driving innovation following a sustainable, market-oriented management approach. Under my new responsibility we will develop sustainable business models on the basis of digital solutions, e-mobility and automation. Together with my colleagues, I am looking forward to continue building the future of our Group”, said Jürgen Gerdes.

Jürgen Gerdes joined  Deutsche Post DHL Group more than 30 years ago and has been a member of the Board since 2007. Gerdes holds a diploma in public administration  as well as business administration (University of Münster). In 2017 he received an honorary doctorate from the HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management.