How This Mercedes-Benz CEO Completely Changed The Company
The Mer-Z-des Man
The story begins not in Stuttgart’s tremendous Mercedes-Benz headquarters but on a construction site in Istanbul. Dieter Zetsche undeniably reshaped the future of today’s most loved automobile company. Here’s a little about “Dr. Z”.
Early Beginnings
Dieter Zetsche was born in Istanbul in 1953. His story started when his father was working on a dam project in Turkey. The family headed back to Germany in 1956, and that’s where Dieter grew up near Frankfurt. Being around engineering truly shaped his future.
Academic Foundation & Career Start
As a young man, he studied electrical engineering at the University of Karlsruhe between 1971 and 1976. Because he did so well, he landed a job in Daimler-Benz’s research department right after he graduated. This was in 1976.
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Rising Through Development
Then came 1981, when Zetsche took on the role of assistant development manager for commercial vehicles. At that time, he was finishing up his engineering doctorate at Paderborn University. By 1984, he was literally leading development efforts abroad.
Global Leadership Journey
At Mercedes-Benz Brazil, Zetsche took up leadership in 1987. Here, he proved his skills as an international leader. He did really well because by 1989 he had gotten a promotion to run Mercedes-Benz Argentina. In 1991, he served as the president of Freightliner Corporation, Portland.
