Akermann Josef (Josef Ackermann)

Akermann Josef (Josef Ackermann)

Biography

The boy from the remote Swiss village Josef Akkermann went to elementary school of the town of Mels where in one class with it 60, and at times and 70 children sat. The high school in Melsa was not at all, and the grown-up Josef had to go every day to the nearest more or less large town of Hens - in the morning two hours by bicycle and by train in one direction, in the evening two hours in another. Every day, five weekly, seven years in a row.

The father future SEO of Deutsche Bank, the practicing doctor Karl Akkermann drilled three sons in the best traditions of strict Calvinist Switzerland. For development of sense of beauty – obligatory daily music: classes of a grand piano, violoncello, violin. For physical development – the bicycle in the summer and skis in the winter. Injuries, inevitable at sports activities, were not an occasion to visit hospital: bruises and even fractures were treated houses, the benefit qualification of the father it allowed.

After school Akkermann's life went on absolutely standard circuit: army, then university. In a platoon where it got, Yozefov was the whole five people, and not to be confused, the administration, without thinking twice, appropriated them new names. "One of us became Giuseppe, another – José, and I turned into Joe", – Akkermann remembers. The nickname was fixed for many years.

The father wanted to see Josef the successor of the case, but in medicine did not pull that. Having reminded the father that one of three his sons already selected to himself a natural-science path (there was the biologist, the second son – the doctor-urologist), Josef entered the university of St. Gallen to study economy and sociology. As well as all young Europeans of that time, he was fond of the ideas of men of the sixties, wanted to understand interrelations between economy and society. In twenty nine years defended the dissertation, and he was invited in assistants to one of the most famous Swiss professors-economists, the radical "green" anti-progressionist Hans Christoph Binswanger. Improbable success for the young man and the paradoxical fact for the biography future SEO of superconservative bank.

From scientific Akkermann did also military career. After several charges of reservists he received a stock colonelcy – the highest rank for the reservist. However only a year later he refused the career of the professional military which opened to it, as well as scientific career, and went in New York to work in real economy – in Credit Suisse. However, army experience did not forget. "At business schools teach how to behave in peace time, and taught me how to behave during war – you should be ready to crisis every minute", – Akermann is not tired to repeat to the colleagues bankers.

In 16 years Akkermann went a way from the assistant to the board member to the president of the company to Credit Suisse. However, life in New York did not come down only to work. Akkermann's wife, Finn Pirkko Myolsya with whom he got acquainted at the university completely separated the interest of the husband in art. With her Akkermann spent the whole days in art galleries, in the evenings took lessons of a classical vocal ("It was wonderful – you know, such wonderful Jewish emigrant from Hungary, taught generally Italian arias") and performed for guests favourite things from Vivaldi for what received a new nickname: "well tempered banker".

"A secret of success of Akermann – in his sincerity, – SEO of the Swiss exchange Reto Franchoni says". Yes, Akkermann is inclined to frank by expressions. "When you do not know what to tell, you say that you think, - he goes on to the employees. - I always so do".

It also caused new turn in career. The president of the Board of Credit Suisse Rainer Gut employing Akkermann still as the green youth did not wish to listen to his councils – and solely pressed through the solution to merge Credit Suisse from Schweizerische Volksbank, having in passing advanced on a post of the head of the joint Credit Suisse Group of the former head of the Swiss representative office of McKinsey Loukas Myulemann. "Now I know how defects break up", – Akermann after the contract cancelation with Credit Suisse which lasted 20 years was recognized. And in a year all were convinced of Akkermann's correctness: if merge did not take place, the cost of Credit Suisse would be much higher. But it did not concern Akkermann any more. Perfectly proved top manager was invited to work in one of the largest banks of Germany – Deutsche Bank.

Appointment in Deutsche Bank

Having received the offer to head Board of Directors of Deutsche Bank, any manager would accept it immediately – but only not Akkermann. Having taken time for reflection, it packed suitcases and left with the wife in a holiday to Finland. Deutsche Bank patiently waited – and correctly did. Having had a rest, Akkermann accepted the offer and plunged into work on pulling of bank from the bog of financial disorders.

Pretax profit hardly reached 4%; the bank was burdened by excess personnel, excess branches, excess activities. Really titanic work, and in "award" - an inevitable brand of the most not egalitarian manager of Germany was coming Akkermann. In seven years Akkermann dismissed nearly 15 thousand employees – 18% of personnel. All layers – from local clerks to the top management underwent ruthless cleaning. In Something its concept of building of minimalist, but supereffective concern even was excessively radical – so, the program of reduction of number of the employees occupied in work with individuals led to outflow of clients, and in 2004 it was necessary to fight for clients again, trying the most exotic means – for example, creating experimental Berlin branch Q110 in which the client can sit on a sofa, read the detective story and to leave the children in the game room – for the period of discussion with the clerk of questions of account management.

But Akkermann's efforts certainly came true – by 2006 pretax profit of Deutsche Bank reached record 6 billion euros, or 30%, and in the 2007th increased even more – even despite the crisis of mortgage lending which burst in the USA. What seriously improved image of Akkermann whom many Germans strongly disliked after judicial proceedings on the case of Mannesmann.

Court on the case of Mannesmann

"Germany is the only country where judge those who try to obtain success and create values, for the fact that they try to obtain success and create values", – throwing journalists these words, Josef Akkermann could not hide the irritation. In the 2000th year he and several other managers successfully carried out merger of the German company Mannesmann by the British concern Vodafone. Akkermann presented the supervisory board of Mannesmann in this transaction and was proud of the achieved results: the share value of Mannesmann flew up to heaven, and even small shareholders as a result could brag of unprecedented profits. "Listen, me even the taxi driver who somehow gave a ride to me, was recognized that, having sold the share block to Mannesmann, he could buy the new machine – unless it is not success?" – Akermann in an interview to the left magazine Cicero got excited. And here – crushing of destiny. The German supervisory authorities considered that the transaction was carried out with violation of the law that the interests of investors are infringed, and three members of the supervisory board of Mannesmann appeared before the court on a charge of frauds.

Before court session Akkermann tried to joke and even showed to journalists the sign of a victory, Victoria - two fingers divorced in directions, forming Latin letter V. "It was absolutely spontaneous gesture. Just on the same day in the States the regular meeting of trial of Michael Jackson was held, it showed this sign, and I involuntarily copied it", – Akkermann justified himself. But it is vain: newspapers blew about Akkermann's "disrespect" for court, and the left activists in eager rivalry shouted of its huge income and questioned voters: Whether "You are ready to be reconciled with reduction of the salary for the sake of greasy cats like this banker?" Akkermann's portrait decorated posters of the socialists urging to enter, at last, in the country the minimum wage, and his name became the character of social inequality.

24 weeks, 37 meetings and 55 interrogations of witnesses later the court ended as had to come to an end – justification. But the public was indignant, charge submitted the appeal, and after reconsideration of the case the new solution was made: Akkermann should pay a penalty in the amount of 3.2 million euros from which 1.9 million will go to the state budget, and 1.3 million – to charity. In the first hours after the pronouncement of judgement in the courthouse tens of phone calls sounded, and on the e-mail address fans came – to consider thousands of letters money in others pocket hurried to share with court the reasons about what it is necessary to spend the confiscated millions for. The server of court did not sustain such loading and failed.

Crisis management

The fact that he saved national economy from effects of the American crisis, all recognize. Akkermann the first understood that purchase of the American credits by medium-sized Düsseldorf bank IKB can lead all German banking system to accident. On July 27, 2007, when none of the German managers suspected about scales of problems yet, Swiss Akkermann considered "the patriotic debt" to announce in the German service on financial supervision of BaFin a situation with IKB, and itself headed the conference of bankers devoted to the organization of the help to crisis bank. Several months later most of the German economists agreed that active and timely actions of Akkermann saved the country from the most serious crisis for all post-war history.

Josef Akkerman is the head of Deutsche Bank. The highest paid manager of Germany, SEO of Deutsche Bank Josef Ackermann performs opera arias and saves the German economy from crash. In 2010 became the highest paid banker of Germany again. Based on activity of bank for 2009 his chairman of the board will receive 9.55 million euros – the truth, not at once.

According to the practice operating in Germany for quite some time now when bonuses of top managers depend on long-term commercial success of the company, Akkermann will receive 70% of the amount which is due to it in case of effective activity of concern in the next several years and on condition of further work on the post.

For 2009 Deutsche Bank got profit in the amount of 4.97 billion euros. 39 million euros will receive for the works eight board members of bank. At the end of 2008 Josef Akkermann refused receiving any awards, having limited to the fixed salary in the amount of 1.39 million euros.

Taught by a bitter lesson with Mannesmann, Josef Akkermann paid much more attention to the image later. Enticed on a post of the personal press secretary of Stefan Baron, the Chief Editor of the leading economic weekly of the country of WirtschaftsWoche. Though Akkerman's salary is far from the income of some American SEO, in Germany where it is not accepted to sport big money, just its millions are regularly remembered by the politicians urging to limit by law the income of top managers. However the huge contribution of Akkermann to prosperity of the German financial system is so obvious now that it even the most zealous critics are not able to diminish "well tempered banker", the son of the rural doctor any more.

2012: Appointment in Russia

In August, 2012 it became known that Josef Ackermann can head Board of Directors created Rosfinagentstva which will manage the state reserves volume in several trillion rubles. The Vedomosti newspaper with reference to unnamed sources^[1] writes about it in number of August 17^[1].

According to interlocutors of the edition, the offer arrived to Akermann from "Russian authorities of the highest level". The source close to the most foreign banker said to the newspaper that Akermann already accepted this offer.

In an interview in 2011 to the edition the banker said that he is familiar with many people in Russia. In particular, he noted good relations with the president of VTB Andrey Kostin and the head of Sberbank German Gref.

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