Alexander Birken, born 1964 in Hamburg, took over the chairmanship of the Otto Group from Hans-Otto Schrader on 1 January 2017.
Before he was responsible as Group Executive Board Member for the strategic development of several companies, for example the Baur Group, the Schwab Group, the Witt Group as well as Otto Group Russia. Since 1 August 2012 he also held the position as spokesperson for the single company OTTO.
Following his Degree in Business Administration at Wirtschaftsakademie Hamburg, Birken began his career at Philips Medical Systems.
In 1991, Birken entered the Controlling Area in the Otto Group and from 1998 to 1999 was responsible for Group Controlling Affiliates of the Otto Group’s stakeholdings in the American and Asian markets. From 1999 to 2002, Birken led Group Controlling Affiliates for the global Otto Group.
He was Chief Operating Officer at the Spiegel Group in Chicago, USA from 2002 to 2004. Since 2005, Birken was a Member of the Otto Group Executive Board and substantially responsible for the successful expansion of Otto Group Russia. Furthermore, he held responsibility for the Human Resources, Controlling and IT Divisions for OTTO, which has been handed over to the Member of the OTTO Management Board in 2012.
Alexander Birken is married and the father of four children.