Jochen Hanebeck to succeed Reinhard Ploss at Infineon
The news of Ploss’ retirement from the Infineon command bridge is actually not a big surprise – already during the recent presentation of the current annual figures, Ploss and journalists joked together about this topic and the possible successor. The successor, it is now becoming clear, sat on the podium during the presentation of the figures and acted clueless.
Hanebeck, like Ploss, is an “Infineon offspring”. Since he started working for the company in 1994 as a development engineer in the DRAM development department, which was still part of Siemens at the time, he has had a steep career with numerous positions, including President of Infineon’s Automotive Division. In 2016, he was appointed to the company’s board of directors; as COO, his responsibilities include Logistics, Quality, Customs and Procurement as well as Production. As such, the chipmaker’s strong market performance is likely due in large part to his skill.
“We are very pleased to present Jochen Hanebeck, an outstanding expert both in the semiconductor industry and of course in Infineon, for the position of CEO,” said Dr. Wolfgang Eder, Chairman of Infineon’s Supervisory Board. In the coming months, the details of the change at the top of the company will be determined together with Ploss. “With Jochen Hanebeck as CEO, the company will continue its success in the undoubtedly very challenging times ahead.” Eder thanked Ploss for his “extraordinarily successful” work at the helm of Infineon. “He has led the company into the global top ten. Thanks to his visionary power, and equally to his personal prudence, Infineon is today excellently positioned as a technology leader worldwide in high-growth markets,” Eder praised.
“I have known Jochen Hanebeck for many years as a competent and reliable colleague,” said Ploss. “He is very familiar with our industry and its challenges and I am proud that Infineon’s course will continue to be determined by a member of the current management team in the years to come.”
Reinhard Ploss (born 1955) has now reached retirement age and is likely to be one of the oldest CEOs in the industry. In this respect, it is no surprise that he did not renew his contract. He is also a long-time employee of the company – the process engineer has been on Infineon’s payroll since 1986 (at that time still from Siemens – the semiconductor division was only spun off as Infineon and floated on the stock exchange in 1999). Ploss has been a member of Infineon’s Management Board since 2007 and Chairman since 2012. Under his leadership, the strategic approach “From Product to System” was established in the company. In addition, the portfolio was expanded and completed through the successful acquisitions of International Rectifier and Cypress Semiconductor Corp.
Nothing is officially known about Ploss’ plans for the future. However, it would not be a surprise if the man who has led Infineon to its current success were to remain associated with the company in the future. “We certainly won’t lose him,” was the word from the company.
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