After 22 years with RWE and innogy and later at E.ON, Bernhard Günther will leave E.ON on December 31, 2020. Over the course of his career, he has performed various key roles covering all areas of finance. Günther began his career in the Group Controlling department before switching to RWE Power, and there and within RWE AG he quickly took on managerial tasks before becoming CFO of RWEST, RWE’s trading business.
He was later appointed CFO of RWE AG and then innogy SE in 2016. In all these positions, Bernhard Günther left his mark with strategic and expert foresight. As CFO, he was responsible for the RWE carve-out project and in parallel to this was the driving force behind the successful IPO of the young and innovative company innogy.
Shaping crucial elements
Johannes Teyssen, CEO of E.ON SE, had this to say: “Over the last 22 years, Bernhard Günther has helped to shape crucial elements of the German energy industry.”
“He has also made an important contribution to the success of the complex and pioneering integration of innogy. With his hands-on, always constructive and extremely professional, and loyal approach, in his own special way Günther embodied the innogy culture that is now enriching the new E.ON.”
“I particularly admire his passion and his willingness to tread new ground, as well as his fighting spirit in dealing with setbacks and difficult situations.”
Managing the integration
Leonhard Birnbaum commented: “Even after completion of the takeover, Bernhard Günther continued to manage the integration of innogy as a member of the Board because he felt a pressing obligation to his employees and his company.
“He was and is a stroke of luck for us at E.ON. I cannot imagine a better colleague to lead the integration or a better person to have on the Board at innogy.”
“As a company, we owe a big debt of thanks to Bernhard, but I also know that to many people he is a role-model both professionally and personally. We will miss him and wish him all the best for the tasks awaiting him.”