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Farewell to Professor Dr. Hartmut Kreikebaum

After more than forty years of university teaching and research, most recently as Chair in International Management at EBS Universität für Wirtschaft und Recht, Professor Dr. Hartmut Kreikebaum will now commence his well-deserved retirement.

Kreikebaum, originally from the Sauerland, was born February 1st, 1934 in Werdohl. He is married with two children and four grandchildren. His scholarly education began with assistance from the Studienstiftung, the German National Merit Foundation, in 1954, at the University of Cologne. . Between 1954-59, Kreikebaum studied Economics and Business Administration under Alfred Müller-Armack, Günter Schmölders, and Erich Gutenberg in Cologne. He completed his studies with a Dipl.- Volkswirt (Political Economics) degree in 1958; Dipl.-Kaufmann (Business) in 1959; and Dr.rer.pol. (Economic Sciences) in 1960.

After working at the offices of the German National Merit Foundation, he decided to pursue Master studies in Business Administration at Harvard University between 1961 and 1962. He wrote his Masters thesis, based on empirical research of the affects of Automation on personnel and society, under the tutelage of John T. Dunlop; a widely acknowledged expert in the field of Industrial Relations. This initial exposure to collective decision-making lead to empirical research of the process of humanisation, which served Kreikebaum well in his later roles on the Board of Directors for a number of corporations (among others, the Adam Opel AG) and as a mediator.

Until he was habilitated in Cologne in 1970, Kreikebaum was Assistant Professor in Mainz and employed in the Internal Auditing department of Boehringer Ingelheim. From 1971 to 1999, Prof. Dr. Hartmut Kreikebaum held the Chair in Industrial Management at the Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt/Main. Central themes in both his teaching and research since the 1970s were the topics of ecological sustainability and integrated environmental protection strategy. He is credited with several international environmental protection conferences and lecture series held across South America, East Africa, and East Asia. Another focus, was the comparison of international ethical standards for business enterprise. A comparative study conducted in conjunction with the UCLA and Harvard Business Schools resulted in new approaches to the resolution of ethical conflict.

After becoming emeritus, Kreikebaum pursued his research interests in Corporate Leadership, Environmental Politics, and Ethics at EBS with the Chair of International Management II. Four years ago, he founded the "Institut für Unternehmensethik" (, or Intitute for Ethical Business), at EBS Universität. This enterprise offers students the opportunity to gain unconventional practical experience in social services and to support companies in both their social service contributions and socially responsible business practices.

For ten years, Kreikebaum was an active volunteer for the Fulbright Commission. He was also a dedicated member of the Academic Advisory Board at the Goethe Institute for many years and a member of the Grant Committee for the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung as well as a Liaison Professor at the Foundation. Privately, Kreikebaum was active as predicant in the Protestant Evangelical Church, in the implementation of regional sustainability strategies, and on communal political projects for the improvement of natural conservation and energy efficiency of his local community in Schlangenbad. He will continue on as Co-Director of the Institute for Ethical Business Ethics, together with Philosophy Professors Richard Raatzsch und Max Urchs.