Press release: Transformation of central unit MarCom at Messe München

  • Systematic orientation towards market requirements and media usage behavior
  • Modified structure with matrix organization in a New Work environment

Messe München GmbH is transforming its globally active Central Unit MarCom (Marketing & Communications). New technologies and communication channels, changed media usage behavior and a growing brand portfolio have made it necessary to adapt the structure and refine the roles and competencies. As Chief Marketing & Communications Officer (CMCO) since April 2018, Aleksandra Solda-Zaccaro (51) has responsibility for the worldwide brand portfolio under the umbrella brand of Messe München and is now transforming Central Unit MarCom in a multi-stage project. With a new matrix structure, the aim is to simplify processes, strengthen the transfer of knowledge and increase collaboration in order to reach all target groups optimally through very media channel.

To take just one example, bauma—the world’s biggest B2B trade fair—shows the necessity of this transformation. Its more than 620,000 visitors come from over 200 countries, their media channels and media usage behavior are heterogeneous and are constantly changing. At the same time, digitization of the platforms is playing an increasingly important role in both the B2B and B2C areas. So the brands stand for comprehensive all-year-round communication between the customers and brands they can trust. Aleksandra Solda-Zaccaro wants to provide answers to these challenges.

As brand managers in the new structure, the staff in the seven category areas (Construction/Property, Capital Goods, Technology, Electronic, Consumer Goods/Lifestyle, New Brands/Products/Services and Corporate) are to take charge of the relevant brands of Messe München. The experts in Professional Services are to look after the processing in marketing and communications. The MarCom Strategy Dept. will systematically take care of the customer journey and data-driven marketing and communications. The Corporate Team, who look after the umbrella brand, will further refine the Group’s main strategic thrust in terms of communications. “With this transformation, we can convey the worldwide brand portfolio optimally through the media and strengthen the corporate reputation of the Messe München brand in the public eye”, explains Klaus Dittrich, Chairman & CEO of Messe München.

Reconfiguration of the leadership team

“As part of the transformation, the leadership team is also being reconfigured. With Susanne Bömmel, Astrid Nadolni, Frank Fleschner and Christian Krause, no less than four external leaders are augmenting our team. Highly experienced colleagues from the company are taking up new roles so that we have created a diverse leadership team”, says Ms. Solda-Zaccaro happily.

MarCom Strategy

Susanne Bömmel (48), Head of MarCom Strategy
Susanne Bömmel brings extensive experience in events. She acquired this at the leading digital conference DLD among other positions. A trained journalist, she worked in various posts at the international group Hubert Burda Media and also built up the corporate communications of Madsack Mediengruppe. In the course of this, she always focused on new development and digitization.

MarCom Professional Services

Nicole Hagenbring (47), Head of MarCom Professional Services
Nicole Hagenbring has been at Messe München for 15 years and here she acquired extensive experience in leadership and change management as well as marketing & communications. Among other positions, she was Deputy Head of Corporate Marketing and, most recently, Head of Exhibition PR. An MBA, she had previously worked in various advertising agencies.

MarCom Heads of Category

Astrid Nadolni (40), Head of Construction/Property Category
Astrid Nadolni studied business administration in France and has worked as a strategic marketing and sales manager on international level for 17 years. In various positions in the hospitality and mobility sectors, she was responsible for teams and business projects as well as products. Disneyland Paris, Costa Cruises in Genoa, SNCF in Brussels and, most recently, Easyfairs Deutschland are the previous stages in her career.

Sabine Feller (47), Head of Capital Goods Category
Sabine Feller can look back on eight years of activity at Messe München. She has held various managerial positions in marketing. Most recently, she headed the Exhibition Marketing Dept. for the capital goods fairs. A trained business economist, she previously acquired many years of experience in marketing at the Walt Disney Company.

Frank Fleschner (52), Head of Technology Category
Frank Fleschner brings many years of experience in the agency and media business. At the content marketing agency transQUER, he headed the editing and consulting teams in Munich and Giessen, where he developed communication projects for international clients from the sectors of industry, technology and life sciences. Before that, he was an editor at FOCUS magazine in Munich for 15 years, lastly as head of the research, technology & medicine department. Frank Fleschner studied physics in Berlin and subsequently worked as a technology and science journalist.

Ines Izquierdo (39), Head of Electronic Category
Ines Izquierdo has worked at Messe München for around two years, most recently as Head of Dept. in Exhibition Marketing for the Business Unit New Technology and the event Command Control, which started in 2018. Among her activities for Central Unit MarCom, she was chiefly responsible for restructuring the strategy process of visitor communications. A trained marketing and communications economist, she has many years of agency experience (leadership, strategy and media).

Claudia Klingelhöfer (38), Head of Consumer Goods/Lifestyle Category
Claudia Klingelhöfer is a highly experienced journalist and has worked as an editor in the print, online and radio area. Most recently, she was editor-in-chief at the digital marketing agency The Digitale. She came to Messe München in April 2019 as editor-in-chief for ISPO.com. Claudia Klingelhöfer is a qualified sociologist and sports scientist specializing in sport, media and communications.

Holger Lehne (38), Head of New Brands/Products/Services Category
Holger Lehne has worked in Central Unit MarCom for seven years and in various roles, most recently as Head of Dept. in Exhibition Marketing. Before that, he worked in sales and marketing in the bicycle business for ten years. In his time at Messe München, this media business administrator collaborated in many comprehensive projects such as the introduction of the new ticketing, various web relaunch projects and other digital subjects.

Corporate

Christian Krause (40), Company Spokesman
Christian Krause has held various positions in communications for around 15 years. After studying political science, he worked as a freelance journalist and PR consultant. Most recently, he was press officer for Generali Deutschland AG and then worked in content communications at Deloitte Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft.

Stephanie Schuler (48), Deputy Company Spokeswoman
Stephanie Schuler is a qualified German philologist and has an MBA (International Marketing). She worked as Manager in Corporate Communications at Messe München since May 2016.

Fabian Kauer (33), Head of Corporate Team
Fabian Kauer augments the Corporate Team, which is led directly by Aleksandra Solda-Zaccaro at the same time. An MBA, Fabian Kauer has been at the company for four and a half years. As personal assistant to the Chairman & CEO, he was responsible for numerous projects closely relating to the umbrella brand strategy of Messe München. Among his previous positions, he worked as business consultant at Daimler AG in the Netherlands.

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