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The valantic Advisory Board

We want to keep scrutinizing ourselves as a company and having others scrutinize us. For this is how we can keep reinventing ourselves. That’s why we established the valantic Advisory Board. It challenges our corporate development like an external market observer. It examines us from our customers’ perspective, but also assumes the perspective of future colleagues and compares us to our direct and indirect competitors. The Advisory Board was consciously populated so that it can represent these three points of view.

Business man looking outside the window in an office. Senior business man thinking about work while sitting at his desk in a suit.

Michael Nilles – Chief Digital & Information Officer at Henkel

As Chief Digital & Information Officer (CDIO) at Henkel, Michael Nilles is responsible for digitalization, IT, corporate venture capital, and the open innovation platform Henkel dx Ventures. He has more than 20 years’ experience in digital innovation and business transformation for global industrial companies. As a pioneer of the industrial Internet, he gained early experience implementing intelligent, data-driven business solutions and developing new, digital business models.

Before joining Henkel, Michael Nilles was a member of the group management and Chief Digital Officer (CDO) of the Schindler Group and CEO of Schindler Digital Business AG. Previously, he held various international management positions at Mannesmann and Bosch. As CIO of Bosch Rexroth, he digitalized the entire value chain. Michael Nilles began his career as a software developer and consultant at SAP. In the course of his career, he lived in China and the USA for several years.

Furthermore, he is on the supervisory board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Lufthansa Technik AG, he sits on the advisory board of the Silicon Valley start-up FogHorn Systems, and is a member of the IOTA foundation.

Michael Nilles, Chief Digital & Information Officer at Henkel and member of the valantic Advisory Board

Michael Nilles – Chief Digital & Information Officer at Henkel and member of the valantic Advisory Board

Michael Nilles studied business informatics at the University of Cologne and is an alumnus of the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, USA. In 2015, he received the MIT Sloan Leadership Award and the European Digital Business Innovation Award.

Thomas Becker – Managing Partner at Russell Reynolds Associates

Thomas Becker has been Managing Partner at Russell Reynolds Associates since 1996. With 47 offices around the world, the company advises customers about leadership advisory and executive search. His focal points are technology and digitalization.

As Country Manager, Thomas Becker was responsible for the German business of Russell Reynolds Associates, and is today, in addition to his consulting activities, a founding director of the German national organization of the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC). He is also on the advisory board of another company.

Thomas Becker, Managing Partner at Russell Reynolds Associates and member of the valantic Advisory Board

Thomas Becker – Managing Partner at Russell Reynolds Associates and member of the valantic Advisory Board

After completing his studies in business administration with an emphasis on business informatics, Thomas Becker was first employed by IBM in a variety of national and international leadership positions.

Guido Prehn – Managing Partner of Deutsche Private Equity (DPE)

Guido Prehn is a Managing Partner of Deutsche Private Equity (DPE). He has been an investor for over 15 years and since 2010 co-led the evolution of DPE to one of the largest growth investors in the German speaking market.

Previously, he worked in finance/M&A positions at Allianz, TPG Capital and Merrill Lynch.

He studied in Germany, Argentina and the US and has an MBA from the European Business School.

Portrait of Guido Prehn, Managing Partner of Deutsche Private Equity (DPE) and member of the valantic Advisory Board

Guido Prehn – Managing Partner of Deutsche Private Equity (DPE) and member of the valantic Advisory Board