1. Education

2. Career

3. Current mandates

4. References

Helmut Gunter Wilhelm Panke^[1] (born on 31 August 1946^[2][3] in Fürstenwalde, East Germany^[4]) is a senior German manager and is currently holding board membership in several companies - Microsoft, Bayer AG and Singapore Airlines.

During the past recent 30 years, Mr Panke's management career spread over several companies, including e.g. serving as the chairman of the board of management at BMW AG from May 2002 through August 2006.^[5]

Education

In 1972, Mr Panke graduated from the University of Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) in physics, having started his studies in 1968, and received his Ph.D. in 1976.^[3]

Prior to his studies, during the period from 1964 to 1965, he was an AFS Exchange Student to the United States.^[6]

After the award of the doctorate degree in nuclear physics, Mr Panke joined the Swiss Institute for Nuclear Research.^[8]

Career

From 1976 to 1978, Panke was a researcher at the Swiss Institute for Nuclear Research and a lecturer at the University of Munich.

From 1978 to 1982, he was a consultant with McKinsey & Company.^[3] In 1982, he started at Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW)^[5] as a head of planning and control of the research and development division,^[8] before assuming management functions in 1985.^[7]

He later said that his attraction to the company was based on the reputation it had for encouraging creativity and independence among its staff.^[8]

Over the next 20 years, Panke worked his way up through the company, working in nearly every department: he served as the chairman of the management board at BMW (UK) Capital PLC,^[7] and as Chairman and CEO of BMW (US) Holding Corporation from 1993 to 1996, he managed the US manufacturing facility that was responsible for building, as well as corporate planning, organisation, staff, IT, finance and sales.^[8] From 1996 to 1999, his tasks focused on Human Resources and Information Technology.^[7] From 1999 to 2002, he served as a member of the board of management responsible for finance.^[7]

In 2002, Panke succeeded Joachim Milberg to become the chairman of BMW after Milberg's resignation due to health reasons.^[8]

During his tenure from May 16, 2002 until September 1, 2006,^[7] he was credited with leading the company’s internationalization and his refusal to move the company into the lower priced mass market.^[8]

In 2004, he was elected into the board of directors of UBS AG, where he served as a member for eleven years. He left the BoD at the Annual General Meeting of 2015, stepping down due to regulatory provisions regarding the term of office.^[9] Mr. Panke joined UBS AG in 1982, when he was appointed Head of Planning and Controlling in the Research and Development Division. He also worked as a member of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee and of the Risk Committee since 2008.^[7]

Current mandates

Panke has served on the board of directors for Microsoft since November 11, 2003,^[7] as the first board member from outside the United States.^[5] He is also the chairman of the Regulatory and Public Policy Committee, a member of the Compensation Committee and of the Audit Committee of Microsoft.^[7]

He is a board member of Singapore Airlines Ltd. and chairs the Safety and Risk Committee in the organization.^[10] He is also a member of the supervisory board of Bayer AG since October 2006.^[5]

Furthermore, he serves as a member of the advisory board at Dubai International Capital LLC since 2007,^[11] a member of the board of directors of Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA (USA),^[7] a member of the supervisory board at Bayer Schering Pharma AG^[7] and Bayer Pharma AG.^[7]

Mr. Panke serves as a member of the board of directors of ACEA, the Association des Constructeurs Européens d’Automobiles, Belgium,^[7] a member of the board of directors of VDA, the association of the German automobile industry,^[7] and of the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany.^[7]

References

• The Worm
• The Wormery
• The Worm in Paradise
• The Worm Ouroboros
• The Worm Ourobouros
• The worst movie ever made
• The worst poem in the universe
• The Worst Week of My Life
• The Worst Witch
• The Worst You Can Do Is Harm
• The Worthless
• The Woz
• The Wraith
• The Wraith: Shangri-La
• The Wraith: Shangri-La Sampler
• The Wrath of Khan
• The Wreckers
• The Wrecking Crew (movie)
• The Wrecking Crew (music)
• The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
• The Wreck of the Hesperus
• The Wrekin
• The Wrekin (UK Parliament constituency)
• The Wrens
• The Wrens (R&B band)