Thomas Rabe (2022)

Thomas Rabe (born August 6, 1965, in Luxembourg) is a German business executive.[1] In 2006, he was appointed to the Bertelsmann executive board, of which he has been chairman and chief executive officer since 2012.[2][3] Under his leadership, the group has become more international, more digital and more diversified.[4][5] In particular, he has advanced the business with music rights and the educational division.[6] Additionally, Rabe was appointed chief executive officer of RTL Group in 2019.[7]

Early life and education

Rabe was born in 1965 in Luxembourg and grew up in Brussels,[8][9] where his father worked as a civil servant in the European Coal and Steel Community from 1968.[10] He attended the European School and as a youth was a bass player in a punk band.[11] After completing his German baccalaureate (Abitur), Rabe studied Business and Economics at the RWTH Aachen and the University of Cologne.[12] After earning a degree in business administration in 1989, he obtained his doctorate in economics, with a doctoral thesis on "Liberalization and Deregulation in the European Single Market for Insurance" in 1995.[13]

In addition to his native language German, Rabe speaks English, French, Dutch and Spanish.[14]

Career

Rabe began his career at the European Commission in Brussels. At the Commission, from 1989 he worked in the Directorate-General for Financial Institutions and Corporate Law.[10] One year later, he joined his supervisor in moving to the law firm Forrester, Norall & Sutton,[15] which today belongs to White & Case.[16] There he managed client accounts from the European Union, the United States and Japan.[15] In 1991, Rabe was employed by the Treuhand agency in Berlin.[17] In this capacity, among other responsibilities, he was in charge of the privatization of the assets of the Ministry for State Security and the National People's Army of the former GDR.[18] In 1993, he was promoted to head of the Controlling Department.[12] Subsequently, Rabe was involved as head of acquisitions at the Beteiligungsgesellschaft Neue Länder investment agency of the Association of German Banks (BdB),[13] in investing DM 400 million in East German companies.[18] After earning his Ph.D., in 1996 Rabe was hired as office head of the CEO of the Luxembourg financial service provider, Cedel International.[15][18] He held additional positions there before being appointed chief financial officer in 1998.[19] In subsequent years, he prepared the merger of Cedel International with Deutsche Börse Clearing into Clearstream.[18]

In 2000, Rabe joined RTL Group as CFO.[13] Here, he was additionally responsible for strategy and the Luxembourg television and radio business.[20] Five years later, Bertelsmann brought him back to Gütersloh.[21][22][23] Rabe was appointed as the group's CFO on January 1, 2006.[24] At the same time, he was responsible for the Bertelsmann Music Group until 2008.[13] Among other activities, Rabe also negotiated the buyback of shares from Groupe Bruxelles Lambert to prevent Bertelsmann from going public.[11][25] In addition, the group established its own investment fund in Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments.[26] Later, Rabe organized the return of Bertelsmann into the music business.[27] His recruitment of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. as an investor in BMG Rights Management was seen as a key decision for the music company's future development.[1]

Around 2009 Rabe was reportedly considered as future CEO of the ProSiebenSat.1 Media group and of the Franz Haniel & Cie. investment holding,[28] but Rabe ultimately stayed with Bertelsmann.[29][30]

CEO of Bertelsmann, 2012–present

After Hartmut Ostrowski announced his retirement as chairman and CEO in 2011,[31] Rabe was declared his successor, effective January 1, 2012.[32][33] With Rabe's appointment, Bertelsmann ushered in a strategy change towards stronger growth.[34][35][36] Under his leadership, Bertelsmann experienced increased growth into Brazil, China, and India, and consolidated this development by bundling these activities in the Bertelsmann Investments division.[37][38] Also, Rabe managed to complete the merger of Penguin Books with Random House to create the world's largest trade book publisher, and the purchase of the remaining shares in Gruner + Jahr.[39][40] He built the education division into an additional pillar of the business,[41][42] which today operates as the Bertelsmann Education Group.[43] He consolidated the printing operations into the Bertelsmann Printing Group.[44] Thus, by 2016, he had expanded the number of corporate divisions to eight.[45][46]

Rabe's contract as chairman and CEO of Bertelsmann's executive board runs until 2021.[47][48] As CEO of RTL Group, he oversees the company's TV unit;[49] he is a member of the board of directors of Penguin Random House, among others.[50]

Other activities

Corporate boards
Non-profit boards
  • Federation of German Industries (BDI), Member of the Presidium (2017-2018)[53]
  • Baden-Badener Unternehmer-Gespräche (BBUG), Member of the Board of Trustees[54]

Personal life

Rabe lives in Gütersloh and Berlin and is married to a neurologist.[55][56] The couple collects modern art and, in 2015, purchased a Henry van de Velde-designed villa in Tervuren near Brussels.[57]

Rabe is a member of the Catholic fraternity AV Hansea-Berlin zu Köln.[58]

References

  1. 1 2 "Thomas Rabe: Der Visionär mit der Bassgitarre". Handelsblatt (in German). October 10, 2011. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  2. ↑ "Thomas Rabe wird Bertelsmann-Finanzvorstand". Börsen-Zeitung (in German). January 22, 2005.
  3. ↑ "Thomas Rabe wird neuer Bertelsmann-Chef". Hamburger Abendblatt (in German). October 11, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Die neue Strategie des Medienkonzerns". Handelsblatt (in German). March 29, 2012.
  5. ↑ "Bertelsmann stellt sich breiter auf". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). March 23, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Halbzeit bei Bertelsmann". Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). April 1, 2015.
  7. ↑ Hein, David (April 1, 2019). "Thomas Rabe wird CEO der RTL Group" (in German). Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Schlanker, schneller, fitter". Neue Westfälische (in German). December 28, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Der Nachfolger". Westfalen-Blatt (in German). October 11, 2011.
  10. 1 2 "Ruhig und nüchtern an die Arbeit gehen". Neue Westfälische (in German). December 29, 2005.
  11. 1 2 Ankenbrand, Hendrik (April 28, 2012). "Der Überflieger". Faz.net (in German). Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  12. 1 2 "Thomas Rabe". Internationales Biographisches Archiv (in German). Munzinger. February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Thomas Rabe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bertelsmann". Bertelsmann. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  14. ↑ "Der Spätberufene". Financial Times Deutschland (in German). October 11, 2011.
  15. 1 2 3 "Blitzkarriere". Börsen-Zeitung (in German). August 3, 2006.
  16. ↑ "White & Case links with Brussels boutique". International Financial Law Review. January 1, 1998. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Nicht bummeln!". Manager Magazin (in German). December 14, 2012.
  18. 1 2 3 4 "Der Wechselwillige". Die Zeit (in German). July 9, 2009.
  19. ↑ "Zwei Ernennungen bei Cedel International". Börsen-Zeitung (in German). November 13, 1998.
  20. ↑ "Der kickende Tandemfahrer". Handelsblatt (in German). September 12, 2003.
  21. ↑ "Bertelsmann holt Finanzchef von RTL". Financial Times Deutschland (in German). January 20, 2005.
  22. ↑ "Mittelfeldspieler mit Ambitionen". Neue Westfälische (in German). January 20, 2005.
  23. ↑ "Aufbruch nach Gütersloh". Handelsblatt (in German). January 21, 2005.
  24. ↑ "Eine erstklassige Besetzung". Neue Westfälische (in German). January 22, 2005.
  25. ↑ "Bertelsmann verhindert eigenen Börsengang". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). May 25, 2006. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  26. ↑ "Bertelsmann wird Finanzinvestor". Financial Times Deutschland (in German). March 21, 2007.
  27. ↑ "Bertelsmann kehrt zurück ins Musikgeschäft". Die Welt (in German). July 8, 2009. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  28. ↑ "Dünne Luft". WirtschaftsWoche (in German). June 15, 2009.
  29. ↑ Ritter, Johannes (January 22, 2011). "Der scharf rechnende Musiker bleibt bei Bertelsmann". Faz.net (in German). Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  30. ↑ "Ich bin nicht auf der Durchreise". Die Zeit (in German). February 20, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  31. ↑ "Ostrowski macht Platz". Neue Westfälische (in German). October 11, 2011.
  32. ↑ "Bertelsmann tauscht den Chef aus". Handelsblatt (in German). October 11, 2011.
  33. ↑ "Voll auf Angriff". Der Spiegel (in German). October 17, 2011. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  34. ↑ "Thomas Rabe sucht das Filet". Die Zeit (in German). September 6, 2012.
  35. ↑ "Zurück zu alter Größe". Horizont (in German). October 13, 2011.
  36. ↑ "Der Hoffnungsträger". Welt am Sonntag (in German). October 16, 2011.
  37. ↑ "Globales Wachstum als Ziel". Westfalen-Blatt (in German). February 13, 2012.
  38. ↑ "Shobhna Mohn sorgt für Wachstum". Neue Westfälische (in German). December 3, 2016.
  39. ↑ "Bertelsmann schmiedet weltgrößten Buchverlag". Spiegel Online (in German). October 29, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  40. ↑ "Bertelsmann übernimmt Gruner + Jahr komplett". Die Welt (in German). October 7, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Bertelsmann setzt auf Bildung". Die Welt (in German). March 26, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  42. ↑ "Wir haben zu lange auf strukturell rückläufige Geschäfte gesetzt". Spiegel Online (in German). November 6, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  43. ↑ "Bertelsmann Education Group bündelt Bildungsgeschäfte". Börsenblatt (in German). September 10, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  44. ↑ "Bertelsmann vereinigt seine Drucksparte". Deutscher Drucker (in German). November 12, 2015.
  45. ↑ "Bertelsmann sortiert sich neu". Handelsblatt (in German). March 23, 2016.
  46. ↑ "Bertelsmann: Endlich wieder fit?". Die Zeit (in German). July 7, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  47. ↑ "Vertragsverlängerung für den Bertelsmann-Chef". Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). January 11, 2016.
  48. ↑ "Thomas Rabe führt Bertelsmann bis 2021". Rheinische Post (in German). January 27, 2016.
  49. 1 2 "Board of Directors". RTL Group. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  50. ↑ "Board of Directors". Penguin Random House. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
  51. ↑ "Bertelsmann-Chef Rabe soll Adidas-Aufsichtsrat führen". Manager Magazin (in German). February 13, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  52. ↑ "Bertelsmann-Chef Rabe gibt Vorsitz in Symrise-Aufsichtsrat ab". Handelsblatt (in German). April 26, 2019. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  53. ↑ "Presidium" (in German). Federation of German Industries (BDI). Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  54. ↑ "Board of Trustees" (in German). Baden-Badener Unternehmer-Gespräche (BBUG). Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  55. ↑ "Punk à la Gütersloh". WirtschaftsWoche (in German). October 17, 2011.
  56. ↑ "Gütersloh reloaded". Manager Magazin (in German). November 18, 2011.
  57. ↑ Jan Hauser (December 9, 2018), Birgit und Thomas Rabe helfen der Bauhaus-Universität in Weimar Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
  58. ↑ Gesamtverzeichnis des Cartellverbands der katholischen deutschen Studentenverbindungen (in German). 2015.
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