Horst Baier hands over the organisation in great shape after 22 years including eleven years as Executive Board member.
HANOVER – Horst Baier (61), CFO TUI Group, will be leaving TUI Group as at 30 September 2018 after 22 years, including almost 11 years as Executive Board member. He will pass the baton to his successor Birgit Conix (52) on 1 October, at the beginning of the financial year 2019. She has been a member of TUI AG’s Executive Board since 15 July and has been appointed as new CFO by the Supervisory Board.
Horst Baier was appointed as TUI AG Executive Board member in 2007 and has been CFO since 2010. In the nearly eleven years as Executive Board member, he was instrumental in making TUI the world market leader in tourism. Although he faced a challenging period characterised by the global financial crisis, disgruntled investors and break-up scenarios at the beginning of his Board mandate, TUI successfully managed to get back on track for success during his term of office. He played a vital role in TUI’s restructuring launched in 2013 and the merger between TUI AG and TUI Travel PLC at the end of 2014. Apart from the integration of TUI Travel PLC in TUI AG, Horst Baier earned great merit in transforming TUI as a pure play tourism group. This included the IPO of Hapag Lloyd AG (container shipping) and the complete placement of all remaining TUI shares in the stock market in 2017. Horst Baier helped shape Hapag Lloyd Container-Schifffahrt’s realignment and IPO in the Supervisory Board of Hapag Lloyd AG. With his profound business and market knowledge and his understanding of the capital markets, he contributed essentially to the success of the realignment.
Horst Baier also drove TUI’s ongoing transformation as a tourism group with a focus on its own hotel and cruise brands further ahead. To that end, all other non-core businesses and companies were successfully sold. TUI sold, for instance, the bedbank Hotelbeds Group and the specialist tour operators combined under the Travelopia brand. Baier used part of the sales proceeds of around two billion euros to accelerate the expansion of the hotel portfolio and the cruise ship fleet and to further strengthen the balance sheet. During his term of office, TUI pursued a clear funding strategy. Due to its funding discipline, which steadily improved under his leadership, TUI now benefits from better terms and conditions for its refinancing schemes.
Professor Dr Klaus Mangold, Chairman of TUI Group’s Supervisory Board: “TUI’s Supervisory Board thanks Mr Baier wholeheartedly for the excellent performance he has delivered for TUI Group. In particular the merger between TUI AG and TUI Travel PLC would not have been conceivable without Mr Baier’s strategic vision, unique expertise and special implementation strength. Through his work, he substantially helped shape TUI in the more than two decades of his affiliation to our Group and secured the trust of the international capital markets and investors in TUI’s successful development and viability, above all in the past few years. TUI is in excellent financial health today, and this is due in large measure to Horst Baier. The Group has excellent prospects for the future. Horst Baier leaves the organisation in great shape to his successor Birgit Conix. As a leadership personality with skill, foresight and empathy, Horst Baier remains a role model for many employees, and his work will continue to resonate with the Group even after he leaves the organisation. On behalf of the entire organisation but also personally, I wish him all the best and every success for his plans for the future.”
Fritz Joussen, CEO TUI Group: “On behalf of the Executive Board and all colleagues working for our Group, I thank Horst Baier for his outstanding services for TUI. I would like to personally thank him for the trusting and open cooperation based on partnership. Since I joined TUI, Horst Baier has always been an extremely valuable and reliable advisor and companion for me. Our colleagues have also benefited from Horst Baier’s profound expertise and valuable inputs. It is in large measure due to him that our organisation is in excellent shape today. From many talks I know that our colleagues across the Group will miss Horst Baier as part of the TUI team. Consistently pursuing his goals with perseverance, but always remaining calm, fair and human, he has above all been a great team player. On behalf of all colleagues at TUI, I wish him all the best and every success for the future. I am delighted that he will remain linked to TUI and TUI Foundation.”
Horst Baier joined TUI Group GmbH in 1996 as Head of Finance and Accounting. In 2001, he was appointed Managing Director Finance and Administration at TUI Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH and subsequently became Head of Accounting and Reporting at TUI AG. In November 2007, Horst Baier was appointed as member of TUI AG’s Executive Board in charge of Controlling. In February 2010, he became TUI AG’s CFO. From September 2012 until the merger between TUI AG and TUI Travel PLC in December 2014, he additionally assumed the role of TUI AG HR Director. Since September 2012, he has also been a member of the Board of Trustees of TUI Foundation. He will retain his mandate as member of the Board of Trustees after terminating his career within the Group, and he will continue to support the topics promoted by TUI Foundation, in particular by promoting support for the European idea among young people.
Angelos is the news editor for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). His role includes to monitor the hundrends of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skim the most important according to our strategy.
He currently studies Communication, Media & Culture in Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens.
