May 30, 2022 8:00 AM

Female leadership in the Ruhr metropolis: Initiativkreis Ruhr and thyssenkrupp bring together female managers from the region for the first her.summit

At the thyssenkrupp Quartier in Essen, around 140 participants discuss the topic of the future: the Ruhr region and hydrogen – a region as a pioneer for the green transformation

Kick-off of a new series of networking events for women executives in the region – and also for women with their sights on an executive position

The second her.summit will be hosted by Vonovia SE in 2023

Together with the Initiativkreis Ruhr, thyssenkrupp is launching a new networking format for female executives in the region. For the first time, around 140 leading women from the Rhine and Ruhr will meet today at the her.summit in the thyssenkrupp Quartier in Essen. The new format is designed to bring together women in positions of leadership from the region to discuss and facilitate ideas for particularly relevant industrial policy issues of our time. The opening event will be held under the motto of: the Ruhr region and hydrogen – a region as a pioneer for the green transformation. The participants are drawn from business, science, associations, media and medicine.

The goal of the initiative is to establish an additional, sustainable network for female managers in the region, to inspire more women to take on leadership and key positions, to support them on their way there, and to give them greater visibility. In addition, the Ruhr region is to be positioned throughout as a strong region with strong players in future topics.

Dr. Anette Bickmeyer, Managing Director of the Initiativkreis Ruhr: "Here in the Ruhr region, there are many women who can be role models for the next generation of female managers thanks to their outstanding expertise, leadership skills, and corresponding positions. With the her.summit we want to build a network of these top women in the region - and also for women who have set their sights on a top position. This not only strengthens the women among themselves, but also our region as an important place for doing business. The Ruhr region as a region of strong women is a vision that we really are getting closer to."

Martina Merz, Chair of the Executive Board of thyssenkrupp AG: "We want to provide a cross-sector and cross-company platform for women in leadership positions and women with great potential to promote diversity in the region. I am therefore delighted that thyssenkrupp is hosting the first edition of her.summit."

The program of the her.summit includes keynotes, panel discussions and workshops on the topics of green transformation, female career paths and innovative strength. Speakers include Katherina Reiche, CEO of Westenergie AG, Dr. Sopna Sury, Chief Operating Officer Hydrogen of RWE Generation SE, Dr. Marie Jaroni, Head of Decarbonization and Sustainability at thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG, and Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Ursula Gather, Chairwoman of the Board of Trustees of the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach- Foundation.

In the future, the her.summit will be held once a year as the premier networking event for leading female managers in the Ruhr region and beyond. The event will be hosted by one company from the region at a time, with each company passing the baton to the next in successive years. Following the premiere at thyssenkrupp, the second edition of the her.summit in 2023 will be hosted by Vonovia SE.

You will find licence-free photo material for your use here: www.her-summit.com.

Contact persons for media

thyssenkrupp AG Communications

Nicola Röttger

Phone: +49 (201) 844-536481
mailto: press@thyssenkrupp.com

www.thyssenkrupp.com
Twitter: @thyssenkrupp

Initiativkreis Ruhr GmbH, Head of Communication

Katja Mazurek
Phone: +49 (201) 8966-660
mailto: mazurek@i-r.de