From Executive Suite to Jail: One German CEO’s Tales of Prison
- Ex-top manager recalls when the door shut for the first time
- Former Bertelsmann head says humility is key for Audi CEO
Augsburg-Gablingen prison.
Photographer: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/picture alliance via Getty Images
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One moment you’re the globetrotting head of a corporation with an army of subordinates to execute your every order, the next you’re behind bars and required to file requests for items as banal as toilet paper.
While jailing executives, particularly those of global companies, is an almost unheard of occurrence in Germany, that’s just what happened to Audi Chief Executive Officer Rupert Stadler last month. One of the few other corporate leaders to suffer a similar fate was Thomas Middelhoff, and he has some words of advice to adapt to the circumstances.