Wikipedia

Jochen Zeitz

Jochen Zeitz - born 6 April 1963 - is a businessman best known for his work as CEO of Harley-Davidson, Inc.[2] and Chairman of LiveWire Inc. In April 2025, Zeitz announced his intention to retire from the Company after five years as CEO.[3]

Jochen Zeitz
Born
Jochen Zeitz

(1963-04-06) 6 April 1963 (age 62)[1][better source needed]
Mannheim, Germany[1]
EducationEuropean Business School
Title
SpouseKate Garwood[1]
Children2[1]

Previously Zeitz served as the Chairman and CEO of Puma for 18 years.[not verified in body] He also served as board member of Kering, the luxury goods company and chaired their Sustainability Committee, for whom he developed its global sustainability strategy. Zeitz is currently a board member The B Team and Cranemere.[not verified in body]

In addition to this, Zeitz previously served on the board of Wilderness Safaris. Jochen Zeitz is also the co-founder of The B Team[4] with Richard Branson, and the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa.

Early life

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Zeitz was born in Mannheim, Germany.[1] He studied in Germany, Italy, France, and the United States,[5][1] and graduated from the European Business School in International Marketing and Finance.[6]

Career

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Zeitz began his professional career with Colgate-Palmolive in New York and Hamburg.[citation needed]

Puma

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He joined Puma in 1990, and in 1993 was appointed Chairman and CEO, becoming, at the age of 30, the youngest CEO in German history to head a public company.[5] He then led the worldwide restructuring of Puma, which was in financial difficulties at the time, and implemented a long-term development plan [7][8] that saw Puma's share price gain around 4,000 percent [9] in 13 years, from €8.6 in his first year as CEO to an all-time high of €350[10] when the majority stake of the company was acquired by Kering in 2007.[11]

Zeitz led Puma through a significant restructuring, during which the company's market presence and financial performance improved notably.[according to whom?][citation needed] In 2008, Zeitz introduced PUMAVision, an ethical framework defined by the four key principles of being fair, honest, positive and creative as applied to all professional behaviour, business procedures and relationships throughout and outside of Puma.[citation needed] There,[verification needed] he also conceived of the concept of an Environmental Profit & Loss Account (EP&L Account).[12] In May 2011, he announced Puma's EP&L Account,[13] which assigned a monetary value to its businesses use of ecosystem services across its entire supply chain.[citation needed]

From 2010 to 2012, Zeitz was CEO of Puma's Sport & Lifestyle division, which included Puma and Volcom,[citation needed] and was its Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO),[citation needed] and then Chairman of the Board's sustainable development committee,[citation needed] and a Director of Kering.[citation needed]

In 2014, Zeitz co-founded The B Team with Sir Richard Branson, which "brought together the world's top business leaders to promote socially and environmentally conscious business practices across the globe".[This quote needs a citation]

Zeitz is also a board member of Cranemere,[when?][citation needed] and served on the Board of the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) for three years.[when?][citation needed]

Harley-Davidson

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Zeitz became a member of the Board of Directors of Harley-Davidson in 2007,[citation needed] and served as the Chair of Harley-Davidson’s Sustainability Committee since its inception in 2011.[citation needed] Known for “proven turnaround” skills,[This quote needs a citation][editorializing] Zeitz assumed the helm of Harley-Davidson first as interim CEO in February 2020,[citation needed] and took over the job permanently in May 2020, succeeding Matthew S. Levatich.[citation needed]

In July 2020, Zeitz announced "The Rewire" which led to a new five-year strategic plan called "The Hardwire".[This quote needs a citation] The Rewire strategy included prioritizing markets, that matter and enhancing core strengths of the company while balancing expansion into new spaces.[citation needed] The Hardwire strategy included a new pre-owned motorcycle program;[citation needed] investment in the parts, accessories, riding gear and financial services segments of the business;[citation needed] and a new division focused exclusively on electric motorcycles.[citation needed] In a subsequent financial filing,[when?] Harley-Davidson Inc. reported better-than-expected results,[citation needed] "in a sign that its turnaround plan was taking hold".[This quote needs a citation]

In February 2021, inspired by KKR & Co Inc executive Pete Stavros,[14][15] Zeitz announced the motorcycle maker would give stock grants to employees, including hourly and factory workers, to align with executives and shareholders.[citation needed]

In December 2021, Zeitz announced that LiveWire, the electric-motorcycle division of Harley-Davidson, would become a separate publicly traded company to "operate with the same agility and speed as a startup";[verification needed] the company went public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on 27 September 2022.[16] On the day of listing, Zeitz was the first CEO to ring both the opening and closing bell of trading on the NYSE,[citation needed] also being the first to run two public-listed companies.[citation needed]

Serving as Livewire's first Chairman and CEO since going public,[citation needed] he handed over leadership on 12 June 2023 to his successor Karim Donnez, while remaining as chairman of the company.[citation needed] In 2019, under Zeitz's leadership, Harley-Davidson introduced its first electric model, the LiveWire.[citation needed]

In 2023, The Hardwire was in its third year of implementation; since its launch, the company had not missed quarterly earnings.[citation needed][17][18] Analysts noted improvements in Harley-Davidson's performance during the initial years of Zeitz's turnaround plan.[19][20]

In 2024, louder criticism and sometimes boycott request was heard from dealers, customers and fans about the DEI (Diversity Equity Inclusion) orientation that Zeitz favoured for the brand.[21][22]

In April 2025, the retirement of Zeitz as CEO was announced by Harley-Davidson. Some media accompanied the news by the reduced sales estimates for 2025, published before the tariff debates initiated by Donald Trump in April 2025. [23]

Philanthropy

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In 2008 Zeitz founded the not-for-profit Zeitz Foundation for Intercultural Ecosphere Safety to support creative and innovative sustainable projects and solutions that balance conservation, community development, culture, and commerce (the "4Cs") in a quadruple bottom line approach, promoting an inclusive, holistic paradigm of conservation that enhances livelihoods and fosters intercultural dialogue while building sustainable businesses. Owner of Segera Conservancy (including its eco-safari retreat that is a founding Long Run Destination), Zeitz preserves 50,000 acres of wildlife habitat in Kenya which follows the 4C approach to support its local communities and provide a safe refuge for endangered wildlife.[24]

Founded by Jochen Zeitz and the ZEITZ foundation in 2009, The Long Run is a membership organisation of nature-based tourism businesses that are committed to driving sustainability through a holistic 4C philosophy. Safeguarding over 21 million acres of nature in 22 different countries, touching the lives of over 750,000 people and protecting over 30,000 plant and animal species, The Long Run is a global membership organization focused on sustainable tourism practices. Zeitz is also Vice-President of Fauna and Flora International.[25]

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

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Main article: Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

The Zeitz Collection was founded in 2002. Since 2008 it has committed to becoming "one of the most representative collections of contemporary art from the African continent and its diaspora".[This quote needs a citation] The Zeitz Collection bought 85 works at the 2013 Venice Biennale, including the award-winning installation at the Angola pavilion by artist Edson Chagas, a series of photographs by Zanele Muholi from the South Africa pavilion, and three large sculptures by Michele Mathison in the Zimbabwe pavilion.[citation needed][26]

In partnership with the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Zeitz founded the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA), located in the historic grain silo in Cape Town's Victoria & Alfred Waterfront.[27][28][29] The museum features 9,500 square meters (102,000 square feet) of space over nine floors, including 6,000 square meters (65,000 square feet) for displays.

In 2014, Thomas Heatherwick was chosen to design the conversion of the 1920s granary into a museum, including 80 galleries, 18 education rooms, a rooftop sculpture garden as well as storage and conservation areas, a restaurant, a coffee shop, and bookstores. The official public opening of the museum took place in September 2017.[30] The opening ceremony was presided over by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.[31] In the first year of opening the Zeitz MOCAA was visited by over 300,000 people and named one of the best museums in the world by the Time Magazine.[32]

Writing and film

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In 2010, Zeitz co-wrote and published Prayer, Profit and Principles – Monk and Manager in dialogue with Anselm Grün, a Benedictine monk.[33] The book has been translated into 15 languages and covers topics such as sustainability, the economy and prosperity, culture, values, success and responsibility.

In 2014 Zeitz co-wrote and published The Breakthrough Challenge: 10 Ways to Connect Today's Profits with Tomorrow's Bottom Line with John Elkington.[34]

In 2021, Zeitz served as Executive Producer of the film Breaking Boundaries. This documentary film, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, breaks down the climate thresholds needed for the survival of the planet and humanity. The ten-minute trailer was screened to world leaders at the Biden Climate Summit in April 2021, and was released globally on Netflix in June 2021.

Zeitz also served as Producer on the award-winning documentary film ‘Ranger'. Set within Kenya’s Maasai homeland, The documentary 'Ranger' follows the formation of East Africa’s first all-female anti-poaching unit. Upending the male-dominated world of military-style ranger training, these women instead undergo an extensive program of deep trauma-release and healing, triggering profound transformation within themselves and sending shockwaves through their communities.[35] The acclaimed film was accepted into 14 Film Festivals and won Best Documentary Feature at the 2023 Sedona International Film Festival.[36]

Honors and awards

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Zeitz has received the "Strategist of the Year" three times from the Financial Times,[37] "Entrepreneur of the Year",[38] “Trendsetter of the Year” and “Best of European Business Award 2006″.[39] In 2004, he was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit of Germany.[40] In 2009, he was named Honorary Warden of Kenya by the Kenya Wildlife Service.[41] In 2010, the German Sustainability Foundation gave Zeitz an award for Germany's most sustainable future strategies.[42] He was named a Conde Nast Traveler “Visionaries 2012”[43] and one of Fast Company’s “10 Most Important Players at the Rio +20 Conference”.[44] He received the 2012 German Image Award,[45] the 2013 Banksia International Award[46] and the Visionary Award for the 2013 Travel + Leisure Global Vision Award.[47] In 2015 he was awarded the Special Advocacy Award for Responsible Capitalism.>[48] The award ceremony was held at Lancaster House in London, and presented by Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills. In the same year, he was ranked #18 of "The World's Top 100 Compassionate Business Leaders" by Salt Magazine and awarded for his advocacy of Responsible Capitalism by FIRST Magazine. In 2016, the Zoological Society of London honoured Zeitz as a ZSL Conservation Fellow. In 2017, Zeitz was named #26 in OOOM's "The World's Most Inspiring People" list. In 2019, Conde Nast Traveler named Zeitz as one of “The 44 People Changing the Way We Travel”.[49] In 2023, Zeitz was awarded the David Rockefeller Bridging Leadership award, recognising his ability to build trust across divides, a collaborative and inclusive approach to solving local, national and global challenges. [50]

References

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  5. ^ a b Cole, Teresa Levonian (3 May 2018). "Jochen Zeitz: on a mission to the art of Africa". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022.
  6. ^ Ashton, James (5 April 2015). "Jochen Zeitz: The Businessman Who Uses His Millions to Change Opinions on Climate Change". The Independent. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
  7. ^ "September/October Issue". CFA Magazine. 17 (5): 1–48. September 2006. doi:10.2469/cfm.v17.n5.4274. ISSN 1543-1398.
  8. ^ O'Hara, Alexander (24 May 2018). "Movers and Shakers?". Oxford Scholarship Online. doi:10.1093/oso/9780190857967.003.0004.
  9. ^ "What's next?", The Common Fisheries Policy, Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, pp. 341–366, 5 March 2016, doi:10.1002/9781119085676.ch17, ISBN 978-1-119-08567-6, retrieved 9 March 2023
  10. ^ "Taking Stock, December 2016: An Update on Vietnam's Recent Economic Developments". World Bank, Hanoi. December 2016. doi:10.1596/25748.
  11. ^ "28. The Clever Little Tailor– 70. The Golden Key", The Original Folk and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm, Princeton University Press, pp. 377–474, 31 December 2015, doi:10.1515/9781400851898-010, ISBN 9781400851898, retrieved 9 March 2023
  12. ^ Rajan, Sreenivas (2012). "Rediff: Innovation in India". SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.2056197. ISSN 1556-5068.
  13. ^ Rosen, Jay (31 December 2012), "3. Phone-Hacking Crisis Shows News Corp Is No Ordinary News Company. The Guardian", The Best Business Writing 2012, Columbia University Press, pp. 32–37, doi:10.7312/star16073-004, ISBN 9780231160735, retrieved 9 March 2023
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  15. ^ "KKR Partner Pete Stavros to Set Up New Fund to Promote Employee Ownership". www.nceo.org. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  16. ^ Swarts, David (27 September 2022). "LiveWire Goes Public On New York Stock Exchange". Roadracing World Magazine. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  17. ^ "Harley-Davidson Delivers Strong Fourth Quarter Financial Results Successfully Completing Second Year of Hardwire Strategic Plan". investor.harley-davidson.com. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  18. ^ Team, Trefis. "Harley-Davidson Stock Had A Stellar 2022. What Does 2023 Hold?". Forbes. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  19. ^ Barrett, Rick (14 July 2023). "How Harley-Davidson's CEO Jochen Zeitz plans on making the company's motorcycles a premium brand". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  20. ^ Waldmeir, Patti (24 July 2023). "Fans show Harley-Davidson has not quite run out of gas". Financial Times. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  21. ^ "Kulturkampf-Biker feiern Sieg über Harley-Davidson". n-tv.de (in German). 21 August 2024. Retrieved 20 April 2025.
  22. ^ "Harley-Davidson sparks boycott call for going 'totally woke' with DEI policies". nypost.com. 24 July 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  23. ^ "Harley-Davidson CEO Jochen Zeitz To Retire". Cycle World. 9 April 2025. Retrieved 20 April 2025.
  24. ^ "About – ZEITZ foundation". Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  25. ^ "Fauna & Flora Foundation Supporters".
  26. ^ Douglas, Caroline & WW&WWW Staff (1 December 2023). "Douglas, Caroline". Who's Who & Who Was Who [U.K.] (WW&WWW, UKWhosWho.com). London, England: A&C Black—Bloomsbury. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u279578. Retrieved 19 April 2025 – via OUP [online database of works]. Note, there is no accessible content available from source except by subscription, and so material corresponding to the foregoing sentence at this link.
  27. ^ Fin24. "Fate of V&A Waterfront's grain silo decided". Business. Retrieved 9 March 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  28. ^ Harris, Gareth (20 November 2013). "Former Puma Chairman Behind Contemporary African Art Museum in Cape Town". The Art Newspaper. Archived from the original on 5 December 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  29. ^ "V&A Waterfront to see a R500m 'repurpose'". Moneyweb. 5 March 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  30. ^ Kolver, Leandi. "Local partners for V&A Waterfront grain silo conversion announced". www.engineeringnews.co.za. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  31. ^ "To Build - Issue 22 - November 2017 to February 2018 by Media Xpose - Issuu". issuu.com. 29 October 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  32. ^ "The World's 100 Greatest Places of 2018". Time. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  33. ^ "Pater und Manager". Frankfurter Allgemeine. 23 May 2011. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  34. ^ John Elkington; Jochen Zeitz; Sir Richard Branson (4 August 2014). The Breakthrough Challenge: 10 Ways to Connect Today's Profits with Tomorrow's Bottom Line. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781118539699.
  35. ^ "RANGER". RANGER. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  36. ^ "2023 Festival Award Winners". Sedona International Film Festival. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  37. ^ "Jochen Zeitz announced as FT Boldness in Business keynote speaker | About us | FT.com". Aboutus.ft.com. 24 February 2011. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  38. ^ Stocks. "Stocks - Bloomberg". Investing.businessweek.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  39. ^ "Jochen Zeitz ! Biography of Jochen Zeitz ! Career of Jochen Zeitz - J…". Archived from the original on 10 February 2013.
  40. ^ "Report". Gq.co.za. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  41. ^ "kenyalondonnews Resources and Information". Kenyalondonnews.co.uk. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  42. ^ "Videos". Moneycontrol.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  43. ^ "Jochen Zeitz Is Convincing Companies to Pay for their Impact - Condé Nast Traveler". Cntraveler.com. 15 August 2012. Archived from the original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  44. ^ Bruno Berthon (29 June 2012). "The 10 Most Important Players At The Rio+20 Conference | Co.Exist | ideas + impact". Fastcoexist.com. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  45. ^ "Der Internationale Deutsche PR-Preis : Home". Der-deutsche-pr-preis.de. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  46. ^ "2013 Banksia Leading in Sustainability - Setting the Standard for Small to Medium Businesses Award Finalists". Sustainabilitymatters.net.au. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  47. ^ "Archived copy". Travel + Leisure. 8 October 2018. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  48. ^ Cammack, Chris (8 January 2016). "2015 Award". Responsible Capitalism. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  49. ^ "The 44 People Changing the Way We Travel". Conde Nast Traveler. 8 February 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  50. ^ "2023 David Rockefeller Bridging Leadership Award". experience.synergos.org. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
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