Russell Reynolds Associates Germany Announces Change at the Top

Russell Reynolds Associates, a global leadership advisory and search firm, today announced that Ulrike Wieduwilt, managing director and senior partner, will be stepping down from her position as German country manager. Wieduwilt will be succeeded by Matthias Scheiff, managing director and senior partner at Russell Reynolds Associates. 

Following a successful 5-year tenure as country manager in Germany, Wieduwilt has been appointed country manager of Russell Reynolds Associates' Singapore office, effective 1 September 2021. Wieduwilt is a longstanding expert in consumer goods, specifically FMCG clients, and has also served a large number of industry clients. Wieduwilt also played a key role in developing the Shanghai office and was a member of Russell Reynolds' global executive committee. 

Matthias Oberholzer, Russell Reynolds Associates' EMEA head, expressed his appreciation: "Ulrike has displayed boundless energy and remarkable empathy in developing Germany to become one of Russell Reynolds Associates' most successful countries. Ulrike positioned us effectively among the leading executive search firms in Germany and has continued to achieve high growth rates, which resulted in 2020 being our most successful year to date. For this achievement, Ulrike and the entire team in Germany deserve my sincere regard." 

The new German country manager, Matthias Scheiff, began his career at Deutsche Börse AG and continued at HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt, now part of the major British HSBC bank. Following his time in banking, the business graduate and DVFA/CIIA investment analyst joined Russell Reynolds Associates in Germany. Within six years he became managing director and partner before moving to another global executive search firm. There, he was made head of financial services in Germany and later appointed co-global head of banking and capital markets, before returning to Russell Reynolds Associates in 2019. 

Scheiff's current consulting focuses on financial services and on filling high-profile supervisory and executive board positions for DAX/MDAX companies and larger mittelstand firms. He is a member of the advisory boards of several investment and holding companies, including a number of family-owned businesses. 

Welcoming the new appointment, Oberholzer said: "Matthias is a highly experienced executive search professional delivering an exceptional performance. We are extremely pleased that he will be assuming the country management position for our German operations and with all our heart wish him the best possible commencement and the greatest possible success."