Continental extends Setzer's contract, welcomes new executive board member

HANOVER, Germany—For the foreseeable future, Continental A.G.'s leadership will be consistent. At least when it comes to Nikolai Setzer.

The Continental Executive Board on April 27 extended the contract for Setzer, who has served as CEO and chairman since December 2020. Originally set to expire in March 2024, the contract now will run through March 31, 2029.

"Nikolai Setzer has our utmost trust and confidence," Supervisory Board Chairman Wolfgang Reitzle said in a statement. "Over the past three years, he has successfully initiated and rigorously pursued Continental's transformation. He will guide the company toward a successful future."

Setzer joined Continental in 1997, while finishing his studies in engineering management, and has been a member of the Executive Board of Continental since August 2009, when he was initially responsible for the passenger car tire business. Two years later, he took over responsibility for all of Continental's tire activities.

Those are responsibilities he has held until recently.

In the years ahead, Setzer will focus a little more heavily on his CEO responsibilities. As of May 1, Setzer has—in a planned move—handed over "his additional responsibility for the Automotive group sector."

And that is where Philipp von Hirschheydt comes in.

Von Hirschheydt was appointed May 1 as a new executive board member for the Automotive Group sector. His initial term will run for three years, through April 30, 2026.

"I hold Philipp von Hirschheydt in the highest esteem," Setzer said in a statement. "As well as his extensive expertise in the automotive industry, he has vast international experience and a close affiliation with Continental.

"I'm delighted to welcome him to the Executive Board and would also like to sincerely thank the entire Automotive team for four years of successful cooperation. We will continue to focus all our efforts on unleashing the full technological and market potential of Automotive and are confident of achieving our mid-term targets."

In his new role, he will continue the work that Setzer has begun—namely realigning the business with a market- and customer-focused structure. And with the right structure in place, the focus, of course, will be steady growth.

"Under the management of Philipp von Hirschheydt," Reitzle said, "the Automotive group sector will continue to progress and become more profitable."

Von Hirschheydt heads the User Experience business area in the Automotive Group sector. It is a position he has held since the company's organizational realignment in 2022. He also is a member of the Automotive Board.

Von Hirschheydt joined Continental as a project manager in the Mergers and Acquisitions department. In 2009, he took over various responsibilities in the former powertrain business, before spending three years in charge of the tire business in Ecuador and a further three years managing the tire business in Shanghai from 2012.

In 2018, he returned to Germany to take over the management of the European replacement business in the Tires group sector.