Simon-Kucher elects new co-chief executive officers
Strategy and marketing consultancy Simon-Kucher & Partners has elected company veterans Mark Billige and Andreas von der Gathen as co-CEOs for a five-year term. The pair will take over on January 1, 2020, replacing Georg Tacke, who has served as the Bonn, Germany–based consultancy’s chief executive since 2009.
Billige and von der Gathen were chosen by Simon-Kucher’s 114 partners at the firm’s global partner meeting in Atlanta at the end of June. The global consultancy has a strong US presence, with offices in Boston, Atlanta, New York City, Mountain View, San Francisco, and a newly opened location in Houston.
Mark Billige has been with the company since 2006, and has 15 years of experience in pricing and financial management, with particular expertise in revenue model design, portfolio optimization, and promotional effectiveness. He currently leads Simon-Kucher’s London office, and is the managing partner of UK operations. Billige serves clients across media, software, and technology, as well as private equity.
Before joining Simon-Kucher, Billige held senior positions in pricing and corporate finance at FLAG Telecom, and was also a management consultant at PwC Consulting and IBM Business Consulting. He holds a BA in management from the University of Nottingham, and is a chartered management accountant.
Andreas von der Gathen has been with the firm for 20 years, and is based out of Simon-Kucher’s Bonn headquarters. He is global head of the consumer and retail practice – one of the firm’s largest industry practices – where he leads projects dealing with price and allowance optimization, marketing and brand strategies, and brand valuation.
Von der Gathen is also a lecturer at IIR, Management Circle and Management Forum, and teaches at the University of Applied Science for Economic and Management (FOM). He holds a PhD from the University of Bochum, where his research focused on brand valuation in controlling and auditing.
The firm reported strong global growth for 2018, with 23% growth to reach revenues of $360 million. US revenue growth was even stronger, at 35%, driven by booming consulting demand from the software, internet, and media industries.
Simon-Kucher has a revenue target of $400 million for 2019, and earlier this year had a stated goal of adding up to 400 associates in the calendar year amid booming demand for its services. The company is a leading firm in the area of pricing strategy.
