- Karin Rådström is set to take over from Martin Daum as CEO of Daimler Truck, from October.
- Rådström will move up from her current position, of both Member of the Board of Management for Daimler Truck, and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Trucks.
- The appointment is great news for female leadership, particularly for Germany, where Rådström will become the second female CEO within the country’s DAX 40 – the forty major companies on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange – joining the current CEO of pharmaceutical firm Merck KGaA, Belén Garijo, who before Rådström’s appointment, was the only female CEO in the index.
A change in leadership for Daimler Truck
As part of the handover, outgoing CEO Martin Daum will remain as a full member of the board of management until the end of the year. Rådström only joined Daimler Truck’s board of management back in 2021, while also holding the position as CEO for Mercedes-Benz Trucks, and has already made strong progress in helping increase Daimler Truck’s profitability, as well as assisting the company’s transition to a sustainability-led future, overseeing recent truck launches such as the eActros 600. In her previous roles within the Daimler Truck group, Rådström has already consistently championed female leaders, which will put the company in a strong position to work towards gender equality. As of the start of 2024, women accounted for roughly 30% of the company’s supervisory board, while in the board of management, this was around 14%.
Rådström’s new term as CEO will run until January 2029, while she will also remain in her leadership position at Mercedes-Benz Trucks, until a suitable successor is found. Martin Daum’s departure comes after his near-40 year career at Daimler, after initially joining the company in 1987, helping more recently also play a large part in Daimler Truck’s ongoing pivot to sustainability and electrification.
Karin Rådström commented on her appointment:
“Daimler Truck has a great history in commercial vehicles and I’m even more excited about the role it will play going forward. It’s a unique time to be in our industry and to have the opportunity to decarbonize transportation. I have a lot of respect for this task but at the same time it motivates me enormously. We can make a difference for the future – and we will.
I’d also like to express my highest appreciation to Martin Daum, whose dedication and remarkable work has placed the company in a very strong position. Martin is one of the reasons I joined this company three and a half years ago and I have learned a lot from him. Martin has been and will continue to be a trusted and supportive role model for me”
Joe Kaeser, Chairman of the Daimler Truck Supervisory Board, added:
“We are delighted to win Karin Rådström with her outstanding industry knowledge and leadership skills as the new CEO of Daimler Truck Holding AG. She has proven that she is able to successfully advance the transformation of a brand while navigating a challenging external environment. As a true leader, Karin Rådström has been instrumental in establishing a new performance culture and fostering empowerment, diversity and customer focus. These principles are essential for Daimler Truck to master the transformation of mobility successfully and be our customers’ first choice. We wish her and her team great success and we are very much looking forward to continuing our collaboration.”
