Peakwork unveils senior management shake-up

Peakwork unveils senior management shake-up

Chairman replaced by chief executive among other changes Continue reading

A senior management shake-up at German travel software supplier Peakwork has seen the chairman leave to be replaced by the chief executive among other changes.

Current chief executive Ralf Usbeck assumes the chairmanship of the company’s supervisory board in place of long-standing chairman and investment expert Markus Voelkel.

The new chief executive of Peakwork will be Jan Gerlach, who was previously responsible for sales and project management. He will continue to focus on sales and global expansion.

Michael Schmidt, co-founder and former chief operating officer, has been appointed as chief technology officer and will focus on technical developments.

Former chief technology officer and co-founder Markus Pfau leaves the management board to concentrate on technical software innovations within the company.

Former global business senior vice president Annika Kessel becomes chief digital officer.

Former Vodafone executive Andreas Damm takes on the role of chief operating officer, responsible for account and project management.

Joao Gonzaga joins as chief product officer following time working for international brands in the US and Germany.

With investment from Tui Ventures almost a year ago and Brockhaus Private Equity in May 2017, Peakwork has strengthened its international resources and addressed new markets to extend its network of partners around the globe.

The management team will be supported by a supervisory board, including newcomer Jens Bischof, chief executive of Turkish leisure carrier Sun Express. Frank Rosenberger, executive board member of Tui, advises from a global tour operator perspective.

Usbeck said: “Peakwork’s vision is based on the integration of new service providers and internationally established sales channels and we have already established new business relationships with several strategic partners around the globe.

“The company is now at a point where expert resources combined with strategic first-class knowledge and experience in all core areas of the company have to lead the way.

“We are confident that our proven team, along with new colleagues Andreas Damm as COO and Joao Gonzaga as CPO, positions us well in the respective fields. And our new CEO, Jan Gerlach, already has the confidence and recognition of our customers and partners.”

He added: “Markus Voelkel has accompanied us for many years as chairman of the supervisory board and as a friend. We thank him for his many years of active support.”

Gerlach added: “With these new strengths on the management team, we are pleased to present the Peakwork solutions to existing and new customers.”