SMEs Leadership

Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Rudolf Staudigl studied chemistry at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, obtaining his Ph.D. (Dr. rer. nat) in 1981. After post-doctoral research at Harvard University (Cambridge, USA) and Ludwig Maximilian University, he joined Wacker Siltronic AG in 1983.

Rudolf Staudigl became Vice President of Operations at Wacker Siltronic Corporation (Portland, Oregon, USA) in1989 and President a year later. He joined the Executive Board of Wacker Siltronic AG in 1993.

In 1995, Rudolf Staudigl was appointed to Wacker Chemie GmbH’s Executive Board. Since 2005, he has been an Executive Board member of Wacker Chemie AG. In May 2008, Rudolf Staudigl was appointed President & CEO of the Executive Board of Wacker Chemie AG.

Curriculum Vitae

Mary Vermeer Andringa is Chair of the Board at Vermeer Corporation, a global industrial and agricultural equipment company headquartered in Pella, Iowa, USA. Prior to assuming her current role in November 2015, she was CEO and Chair of the Board, focusing on her passion for continuous improvement and innovation.

Ms. Andringa recently concluded her term as chair of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the US’s largest industrial association, leading efforts to promote a healthy manufacturing industry. She is one of 18 private sector members of President Obama’s Export Council, providing trade and economic counsel to the President. As a current co-chair and former chair of a B20 Taskforce, she collaborates with global business leaders to provide recommendations to G20 leaders and advocates for policies of stronger, more inclusive growth. As a current trustee of other corporations, a seminary, and as a former state leader of the STEM Coalition and Board of Regents, Mary offers energy and insight to address opportunities in business, education and workforce readiness. In 2013, Ms. Andringa was inducted into IndustryWeek’s Manufacturing Hall of Fame.

Mary and husband, Dr. Dale Andringa, have two children and six grandchildren. 

Curriculum Vitae

Mr Kawlath is the Managing Associate of the Schubert & Salzer Company Group.

The company headquartered in Ingolstadt manufactures its products in Germany and distributes these products and services all over the world. The core business segments of the company include the development and sale of innovative measurement and control technology solutions for liquid and gaseous media, the production of steel investment casting on behalf of customers operating in the machine and vehicle construction segment as well as the development and sale of ERP systems for medium‐sized businesses.

Before assuming his current position, Bertram Kawlath worked for Eisenwerk Erla GmbH in the automotive component supplier business as a Project Manager before becoming Managing Director and, most recently, he was on the Board of Directors up until 2010. Bertram Kawlath is a historian and businessman.

He studied in London as well as in Erlangen under Professor Michael Stürmer and then went on to complete his MBA in Switzerland. Mr Kawlath also holds an honorary position on the VDMA Executive Board and is also a Board Member and Vice‐Chairman of the VDMA in Bavaria.

He is a representative of medium‐ sized businesses on the Advisory Board for the German Federal Ministries of Economics and Energy and is also a member on the BDI Committee Board of Medium‐Sized Businesses. For two years, he looked after the interests of German medium‐sized businesses as Vice‐Chair of the Entrepreneurship and SME Committee of Business Europe in Brussels.

As a member of the Board of Trustees of the VDMA Impuls Foundation, he advocates regulatory policies. Bertram Kawlath is a member of the Committee of the German Institute for Market and Political Research.

Mr Kawlath is married and father to two children. He speaks English and French and, in his spare time, enjoys sailing and historical motorsport.

Curriculum Vitae

Ms. Leroux is the President of the International Cooperative Alliance, representing the cooperative movement in more than 100 countries. She is also Chair of the Board of Investissement Québec and Chair of the Quebec Economic and Innovation Council, appointed by the Quebec Government in 2016.

She was the Chair of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Desjardins Group, the leading cooperative financial group in Canada, from March 2008 to April 2016, after holding management positions within Desjardins, Québecor, RBC and Ernst & Young.

Ms. Leroux serves as a board member of BCE/Bell, Couche-Tard, Michelin, S&P Global and CIC (subsidiary of Credit Mutuel).

She is a Member of the Order of Canada, an Officer of the Ordre national du Québec and a Chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur (France).

Ms. Leroux also lends her time and support to a host of not for profit organizations. She is chair of the Board of Governors of the Society for the Celebrations of Montreal’s 375th anniversary and Metropolis 2017 and is a member of the board of the Rideau Hall Foundation for the Governor General of Canada.

Curriculum Vitae

Lynette Magasa is the founder and the CEO of Boniswa Corporate Solutions (Pty) Ltd established in 2004. Lynette is described as an entrepreneurial business woman who exudes passion for her business and industry, as well as integrity and humility.

With over 15 years working experience in the engineering and information technology sector, Lynette says that being a woman in a largely male-dominated industry has never held her back.

Lynette started her career at Denel (South African state-owned aerospace and defence technology conglomerate) in 1998 as a receptionist; today she is the CEO of Boniswa which provides meaningful jobs to more than 160 people.

Lynette is holding a Master Degree in Information Technology from the Technical University of Tshwane. She has completed Management Advancement Programme (MAP) with Wits Business School reputable for sculpting global leaders. Currently Magasa is in the final stage of completing MBA with the Regenesys Business School.

Curriculum Vitae

Diane Wang is the Founder and CEO of DHgate.com. Founded in 2004, DHgate.com is the first cross-border B2B e-commerce platform in China dedicated to connecting SME suppliers to global buyers. DHgate.com now has over 10 million global buyers from 230 countries and regions and 1.4 million sellers offering over 40 million product listings.

In 1999, as part of the first generation of e-commerce entrepreneurs in China, Diane co-founded and served as the first CEO of the first B2C transactional platform in China, Joyo.com, which was acquired by Amazon in 2004 as their founding operation in China.

In 2011, Diane was appointed to serve as the Chinese representative of business sector to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), in recognition of her status as a leading advocate for the development of SMEs in China and abroad through e-commerce.

Diane is the Co-Chair of the ABAC SME Working Group, as well as Chair of the APEC Women Leadership Forum. Diane additionally serves as the first Rotating Chairperson of the Entrepreneurs Committee of the China APEC SME Alliance. In January 2015, Diane became the Chinese representative to G20 Business Summit (B20), serving as the Co-Chair of B20 SME Taskforce. That same year, due to Diane’s initiation, the first cross border e-commerce bilateral memorandum of understanding was signed between China and Turkey, which was witnessed by presidents of both countries in Antalya, Turkey.