Fresenius trennt sich von Helios-Chef De Meo

DThe reshuffling in the healthcare conglomerate Fresenius shows no signs of stopping. After almost the entire board was replaced last year, including the top management, the Helios clinics are now getting a new CEO – and that with immediate effect. The long-standing Helios board member Francesco De Meo will be leaving the company after 15 years on the board, according to a brief statement from the Dax corporation on Friday.

There were no warm words of farewell in the message, which speaks volumes about the relationship between the company and its now former Helios manager, who is known for his stubbornness, given the immediate dismissal and immediate replacement of the position.

Robert Möller, the 56-year-old physician who previously served as the head of German Helios clinics, will now also take over the cross-border management in Spain and Latin America for De Meo.

Praktische Lösung für Konzernchef Sen

For Fresenius CEO Michael Sen, who has been reshaping the complex healthcare conglomerate since taking over overall responsibility in October 2022, the solution with Möller is practical. The native Flensburg resident is familiar with the business, the German hospitals, he knows what works well there or what can be learned from the more profitable and faster-growing Spanish hospitals, and he can start working on it directly. This is not unimportant for the company, as the hospitals, along with the Fresenius Kabi pharmaceutical division, play a second crucial role in Bad Homburg’s new strategy.

Helios ist Europas führender privater Gesundheitsdienstleister mit insgesamt rund 126.000 Mitarbeitenden und steuerte 2022 gut 28 Prozent zum Konzernumsatz der Fresenius-Gruppe bei. Mit der laufenden Dekonsolidierung des US-Dialysespezialisten Fresenius Medical Care (FMC), der bisher größten Fresenius-Sparte, steigt die Bedeutung von Krankenhäusern im Konzerngefüge. Entsprechend wichtig ist hier die Nachbesetzung von De Meo und die Herausforderung für Möller.

Dessen Fokus für die Gesundheitsversorgung liegt dabei auf Digitalisierung, Nachhaltigkeit und Qualität. Schon unter De Meos Führung hatte sich der Deutschlandchef intensiv um die Zukunftsausrichtung der hiesigen Helios-Kliniken gekümmert. Anders als viele seiner Branche fremdelt Möller, der nach der Schule zunächst eine Lehre zum Bankkaufmann gemacht hat und erst im Zivildienst sein Interesse an der Medizin entdeckte, weniger mit der von Bundesgesundheitsminister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) angestrebten Krankenhausreform. Statt jedoch auf die Politik zu warten, sieht Möller Gesundheitsakteure selbst am Zug.

In his new expanded role, Möller will also focus on the other important healthcare provider, Quirónsalud, in Spain. In line with the ongoing corporate strategy, he is likely to prioritize leveraging synergies. Although both countries have different framework conditions due to their respective healthcare systems, successful concepts can possibly still be adopted in both directions.

Ich kann es nicht umformulieren.

It seems unquestionable in the corporate headquarters that Möller is up to this challenge. While De Meo remains silent, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Wolfgang Kirsch, praises his successor as a „renowned hospital manager“ and an „excellent addition to the management team“. „With the further development of the hospital business, he will make an important contribution to the successful path towards #FutureFresenius,“ the Chairman of the Supervisory Board was quoted in the press release.

The CEO Sen was full of recognition for Möller, whose appointment is expected to put an end to the personnel changes in the Fresenius management. Since Sen replaced Stephan Sturm almost a year ago, there has been a lot of movement in the top management team. Carla Kriwet, who was appointed as FMC CEO by Sturm, resigned after only 66 days last December and was replaced by Helen Giza. The British former CFO of FMC now has the big task of further developing the publicly traded blood purification specialist outside the corporate structure, but still under the watchful eyes of Sen as chairman of the supervisory board.

In addition, Pierluigi Antonelli, who has been leading the previously managed pharmaceutical division Kabi since spring, and Michael Moser, who recently joined the board and is responsible for legal matters, compliance, risk management, ESG, and the Vamed business area, were also included. Labor director Sebastian Biedenkopf will leave the company at the end of the year. Chief Financial Officer Sara Hennicken joined the board in September 2022 shortly before the company’s separation from Sturm.