SPEAKER: CARL H. HAHN

Dr. Hahn, born in Chemnitz in 1926, studied Business Administration at the Uni-versities of Cologne and Zurich, and subsequently Economics at Bristol Univer-sity.

He then attended the Institut des Études Politiques, Paris (Certificat d'Etudes Politiques). He obtained his degree of Doctor of Economics at the University of Berne, Switzerland.

In 1953 Dr. Hahn began his professional career as Administrator at the European Productivity Agency of the Organisation for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC) in Paris.

In 1954 he became Export Promotion Manager of Volkswagen-werk GmbH. From 1959 to 1964 he was Chief Executive Officer of Volkswagen of America, Inc. In 1964 Dr. Hahn became deputy member, and in 1965 a full member of the Board of Management of Volkswagenwerk AG, responsible for worldwide sales.

In 1972 he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Manage-ment of Continental Gummi-Werke AG, Hanover, a leading international rubber and tyre manufacturer, which he left in 1981 on his appointment as Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG. After his retirement by the end of 1992 Dr. Hahn became a member of the Supervisory Boards of numerous compa-nies in Europe and the US.

Besides being Honorary Chairman of Audi, Skoda and Seat, today he is a member of the Supervisory Boards of Gerling, HAWESKO and Sachsenring in Germany. Likewise he is a Director of Merloni Elettrodomestici, Italy, as well as of Perot Systems and MainControl and serves as a member of the International Advisory Boards of Safire Aircraft Corporation, Textron and Timken (all in the US).

Furthermore Dr. Hahn is member of the Lauder Institute of Management - Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania - and of the International Council of the Salk Institute, California. Among others, he also serves as an Advisor to the President and Prime Minister of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan.

Eight universities in Germany and abroad honoured him with honorary academic degrees. Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Italy, Republic of Kyrgyzstan, Spain, South Africa, the Federal Republic of Germany as well as the States of Lower Saxony and Saxony granted him medals of honour.