Siemens CaseKlaus Kleinfeld (Kleinfeld), CEO of Siemens announced the companys spectacular financial results for 2006 on April 25th 2007. Operating profit for January to March 2007 had increased by 49%, to $2.7 billion, turning Siemens into one of the crown jewels of Germany. But as days passed, there were growing doubts whether he would continue as the CEO. Europes scandal-stricken engineering firm, Siemens, had been under scrutiny for creating slush funds to bribe potential overseas customers. It came to light in November 2006, when 200 police officers searched offices and homes of Siemens employees. Two of the top Siemens employees were convicted by the Darmstadt State Court on charges of bribery. Though Kleinfeld and Heinrich von Pierer, former chairman of the supervisory board were neither found to be directly involved in the scandal were supposedly aware about slush money payments or secret accounts, but they were suspected on the lines that it took place under their reigns.
The business world was aghast with sudden turn of events at Siemens. Who should take the responsibility: the management board, the dual governance structure in Germany and the rest of Europe, or the supervisory board?
Kleinfeld, 49, became the president and CEO of Siemens on January 27th 2005. He became the 11th head in the 160-year history of the company, having a tradition of promoting company veterans for the top executive positions. Kleinfeld had built his reputation on turning around Siemens US operations as a president and CEO, which had interests ranging from water technologies to medical equipment, and employed 104,100. He has turned a loss of €800 million into a profit of €600million within two years [2000–2002]2. Kleinfeld succeeded von Pierer, who has been running the Munich-based company since 1992. Transforming Siemens was not easy in a world, where heavily taxed, slow moving European companies operate at a disadvantage and, German governance structure
Siemens was founded in 1961 with an initial team of about 200 people in a four-room apartment in the building’s courtyard. The building was designed by the architects, a highly sought after name due to the unique location; it featured a series of office towers, a lobby, and a private dining room, among other amenities. The building’s staff range from former employees and analysts to architects, designers and sales specialists to other high-profile executives and their staffs. The building’s current location may present a “redefined setting” by the construction. In order to ensure public benefits and the health of Siemens’ population, a company like Siemens has an international policy. However, it will not be able to carry a global policy in this area for many years. Siemens has had a wide range of policies and services for its customers, including security, environmental protection, research and development. The most important decision of Siemens International, has been to work in a global community of trust, and continue in that sense. Siemens International was a partner in the launch of the EU-Turkey bilateral and international financial programme with the aim of establishing international standards in the areas of security and energy and its development, and was the central regulator of the European Union’s European Electricity, Metre and Fuel Programme [2009–2010]. For more information on Siemens and its various partnerships, see http://www.si-si.fr.
Other business partners involved with Siemens include DHL, Siemens International AG, GĂĽnther Schönmeiser and Telekommer AG. Siemens International is also closely involved with the world’s leading energy brands – including DHL, Siemens, EDF, L.E.M., Siemens Energy, Siemens AG, Vestas, and AGM Technologies. Siemens is also involved with the German-owned German-owned Siemens Technology, the world’s smallest automaker, which is the world’s leading supplier of fuel generation, electrical power, and related products for major power providers. Siemens International CEO and president Peter Oettinger has led the company so far in many ways, including its successful work in Germany with a German company called Siemens Dalles, which operates in the South Eastern European country, and the Siemens Energy company that develops and operates the companyďż˝s nuclear power units. Siemens has helped develop the world’s most comprehensive database and set of standards for energy and clean vehicle technologies, and it has helped shape the energy landscape with the aim of building solutions geared around solar to reduce energy wastage. Siemens is a member of the World Government’s Future of Renewable Energy Program, a research program undertaken by Energie, a Swiss government agency for the next 20 years that will provide subsidies and incentives for the development of renewable energy systems. In 2003, the Agency established the program to promote future research into the energy and transportation technology sector. The goal was to provide an unprecedented opportunity to