15th of September 2022
whu family business summit
As part of the WHU Campus for Family Business, a conference organized by the WHU Institute for Family Business and Mittelstand, this year’s WHU Family Business Summit was a big success. Students and alumni of the WHU participated in a day filled with interesting speeches, discussions and networking possibilities in an open atmosphere at our campus in Vallendar. Look out for upcoming events!
Our Speakers
Interactive Keynote - Intergenerational Management in a Family Business
Hans Ewald Schneider - Shareholder of hasenkamp Holding GmbH
Prior to joining hasenkamp Mr. Schneider worked for the department store Kaufland in Germany and Container Transport International (CTI) in the US.
Mr. Schneider has a Master’s degree in Macro-Economics from the University of Cologne. He is a member of various economic advisory boards and a board member in several national and international associations.
Dr. Thomas Schneider - Managing Partner of Hasenkamp Holding GmbH
Parallel to his schooling, Dr. Schneider regularly helped in the family business and was thus familiarized with the company’s challenges at an early age.
Following his business studies in Cologne, which he completed in 2011, he initially worked for various international logistics and finance companies. In 2018, he received his doctorate in economics from the University of Witten while working part-time.
Since 2016, Dr. Thomas Schneider has been responsible for the Fine Art division of hasenkamp. Now in the 5th generation, he is leading the over 100-year-old family business into the future.
Panel Discussion - Taking in an External Investor and the Foundation of a Family Holding
Moritz Koch - Chairman of the Administrative Board of KAEFER SE & Co. KG
KAEFER SE & Co. KG is an industrial service provider with €1.8bn revenue, operating in more than 30 countries worldwide. As a member of the 3rd generation, Moritz was appointed as Chairman and Speaker for the owning family in 2017. He is also a board member of two other family-owned businesses and leads his own digital strategy consultancy, focusing on mid-cap companies building new business models.
In Dec 2021, KAEFER announced an investment of SMS and Altor together as new 50% shareholders alongside the family. Learn from Moritz about his vision behind the deal, thorough preparation and expected impact on the owner family, the business, and its employees.
Guido M. Sollors - Founder and Managing Partner of Sollors & Co
Sollors & Co. is a Hamburg-based corporate finance and asset management firm. For over 30 years, Guido has accompanied companies and transactions as an advisor, manager, and member of supervisory and advisory boards.
He advises investors in strategic decisions with transaction experience, including implementing growth potentials, succession situations, mergers, restructurings, and other particular shareholder and company-related situations.
Via his own investment company Sollors Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, he holds participations in e.g., FinTech and RegTech companies.
Focus Talk - Succession as a Career Choice from the NextGen Perspective
Carolin Höll - Managing Director of Horst Höll Büroeinrichtung GmbH
After finishing her Bachelor’s degree at WHU, Carolin did a Master’s in Management at ESCP Business School. Following her studies, she completed four years of work at McKinsey before joining the 3rd generation family business Höll.
The IT-Service and IT-Consulting company is located in Baden-Baden, Germany and is focused on office equipment.
Max Spielmann - CEO at Weldebräu GmbH & Co.KG
Max completed his Bachelor’s degree at WHU in 2012 before starting his Master’s in Management and Corporate Strategy at the TU in Munich. After graduating, he gathered work experience in the beer industry to join Weldebräu, a family-owned Brewery in the 9th generation.