The Executive Board
The Executive Board is directly responsible for managing the company and represents Wacker Chemie AG in all dealings with third parties. Its duties include managing and monitoring WACKER’s strategic development by allocating funds, deploying resources, and supporting and overseeing our operating units.
Our Executive Board has four members: two chemists, one engineering manager and one lawyer.
Dr. Christian Hartel
President & CEO
“WACKER ranks two things highly: our proximity to customers and our innovative strength.”
Responsible for:
- WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS
- WACKER POLYSILICON
- Corporate Development
- Corporate Communications
- Corporate Auditing
- Legal & Compliance
- Research and Development
Dr. Christian Hartel has been president & CEO of Wacker Chemie AG since May 2021.
Dr. Hartel was born in 1971, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. After graduating in chemistry at the University of Konstanz, he earned a doctorate of natural sciences (Dr. phil. nat.) at the universities of Geneva (Switzerland) and Frankfurt am Main in 2000.
He then started his career as a consultant at Bain & Company Germany Inc., Munich. In 2003, he joined Wacker Chemie GmbH, working initially in the Corporate Development department. Between 2005 and 2009, he occupied various managerial positions in Sales & Marketing, product development and production at WACKER SILICONES and WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS. In 2010, he became head of Raw Materials Procurement at Wacker Chemie AG. In 2012, he took over as president of WACKER SILICONES. He has been a member of the Wacker Chemie AG Executive Board since 2015 and became president & CEO in May 2021.
Dr. Christian Kirsten
“At WACKER, we understand corporate responsibility in an all-encompassing sense – from product and plant safety, to compliance with all legal requirements, right through to the charitable projects we are committed to.”
Responsible for:
- WACKER SILICONES
- Sales & Distribution
- Site Management
- Corporate Security
- Environment, Health, Safety
- Product Stewardship
- Regions: Europe, Middle East
Dr. Christian Kirsten studied in Düsseldorf, where he received his doctorate in chemistry in 1997. He began his career in Central Research at Henkel AG & Co. KGaA. After holding positions in management consulting and in the automotive industry between 2000 and 2006, he returned to Henkel as head of Global Raw Materials Procurement. Starting in 2013, he was responsible for Henkel’s global adhesives business for the automotive and metal industries, which he managed from his base in Shanghai, China, between 2015 and 2017.
In 2018, he assumed additional responsibility for the entire adhesives business and became president for Henkel in Europe.
Dr. Kirsten has been a member of the Wacker Chemie AG Executive Board since May 2023.
Dr. Tobias Ohler
“When it comes to finance at WACKER, we’re conservative in the best sense of the word. A sound financial position is our top priority.”
Responsible for:
- Corporate Accounting and Tax
- Corporate Controlling
- Corporate Finance and Insurance
- Investor Relations
- Information Technology
- IT Security
- Data protection
- Procurement & Logistics
- Region: The Americas
Dr. Tobias Ohler was born in 1971, in Saarbrücken, Germany. After studying economics and engineering management in Germany, France and Australia, he gained a doctorate in economics from the University of Oldenburg in 2000.
In 1997, he began working as a consultant and associate principal at McKinsey. In 2004, he started at Wacker Chemie AG, where he assumed responsibility for Corporate Controlling in 2005. In 2008, he took charge of Raw Materials Procurement and, in 2010, joined the Executive Board of Siltronic AG as chief financial officer. Dr. Ohler has been a member of Wacker Chemie AG’s Executive Board since January 2013.
Angela Wörl
“WACKER is a globally active company, which is why diversity and openness are core elements of our corporate identity and the way we do business.”
Responsible for:
- WACKER POLYMERS
- Human Resources (Personnel Director)
- Intellectual Property
- Corporate Engineering
- Retirement Benefits
- Diversity
- Region: Asia/Pacific, India
Angela Wörl was born in 1967, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She studied law at Munich’s Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU), where she graduated with the Second State Exam in Law in 1994.
In 1995, she joined the Legal department at Wacker Chemie GmbH. Moving on to the Human Resources department, she took charge of international HR assignments and personnel development in 2003. After further managerial roles at HR, she left WACKER temporarily in 2011 for family reasons, spending almost three years in South Korea and China. Returning to WACKER in 2014, she became head of Executive Personnel and then, a year later, she was made head of Human Resources. She has been a member of the Wacker Chemie AG Executive Board since May 2021.