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In the crowded lecture hall students from TUM and other Heilbronn universities listened with great interest to the presentation by the industry expert. It’s no wonder that Siegfried Russwurm has so many interested listeners: the former Siemens board member has had an eventful career with highs and lows and has excellent connections with politicians and top managers. Yet his career began unspectacularly. He grew up in a small village in Upper Franconia, where people “stuck to what they knew.” A career as a top manager? Unthinkable. As the son of factory workers, it was unusual to aspire to higher education at high school. Russwurm was the only one in his elementary school class to obtain his high school diploma, thanks to the encouragement of his fourth-grade teacher.

Enlightenment While Hiking

Without any grandiose career plans, the young Franconian completed a degree in production engineering. However, attending a summer school proved to be a turning point. There he met a Siemens board member who, in response to critical questions, demanded proof of qualification in the form of a doctorate. During a joint mountain hike, he had a personal conversation with one of the accompanying professors. The young Russwurm was interested and wanted to know “how a doctorate works.” The decision was now made: Siegfried Russwurm determinedly pursued his doctorate at the Chair of Technical Mechanics.

Career at Siemens

Shortly thereafter, he joined Siemens in medical technology as a production planner. “Do your first job interviews where you don’t want to go. As a learning experience, so to speak,” Russwurm advises his audience with a smile. This statement underscores his experience that obstacles can be overcome and crises offer opportunities for change. “You can’t plan your career; you can only acquire building blocks,” he adds as a tip for young students.

His experience in voluntary youth work and his down-to-earth background now bring him many advantages: Russwurm combines credibility with strong leadership skills.

He needs these skills, because in the mid-1990s, Siemens Medical was hit by crisis. During this critical phase, Russwurm was appointed head of production – and thanks in part to his decisiveness in critical moments, the company changed course.

“I was told: You have now achieved everything you can achieve in this company as a production expert. But I was offered the opportunity to take on responsibility for an entire business – including development, sales, and profit responsibility: the Electromedical Systems business area, which manufactures patient monitoring, ventilation, and anesthesia systems and has locations in Sweden and the US.” There, too, the mood is one of crisis, and once again it is Russwurm who is driving forward the strategic restructuring. “I count that among the highlights of my career,” he emphasizes.

The “restructurer,” as Russwurm is known throughout the company, is faced with his next challenge: "Siemens was founded by a Prussian officer. Officers are sent from one battle to the next. Remnants of this DNA can still be found today. This time, the battle is called ‘machine tool control.’" He becomes Head of Motion Control Systems and is responsible for products and solutions related to drive technology – and can invest heavily in innovation and, in particular, digitalization in a thriving business.

“What happened after you came out of this battle?” asks Li. “Something completely crazy. I found out about my own promotion in an email about organizational changes.” Russwurm is appointed to the senior management team of one of Siemens‘ most important divisions: his move to the Siemens Medical Solutions sector gives him visibility.

His promotion to the Siemens Executive Board a few years later opens up new opportunities for him. He is now responsible for regions such as Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Through strategic acquisitions and new business models, Siemens is transforming itself into a software company. Siegfried Russwurm is driving the innovations forward: “Either our competitors will nail us to the wall, or we will turn the tide and put ourselves at the forefront of the digital factory trend.”

Crisis-proof Bon Vivant

His successes paved the way for him to join the supervisory boards of Voith and Thyssenkrupp, where he has been contributing his decades of industry experience as chairman since 2019. Shortly thereafter, he is nominated as president of the BDI — a role that, in light of COVID and the war in Ukraine, comes with new challenges. In both positions, he becomes a bridge-builder between technology and politics.

Despite his many responsibilities, Russwurm also has a private side: for example, he loves currywurst with fries in the cafeteria. “And chocolate pudding for dessert!” Professor Li wants to know what he reads in his spare time. The guest doesn’t have to think long: “Philosophical books.”

And in the concluding question and answer session, Russwurm answers the famous question of what advice he would give his younger self: “I would remain silent and not give any advice at all. Otherwise, I would have been afraid of what lay ahead. I would have been completely different, much too hesitant in my approach to things.”