David Riefenstahl

10+ M&A mandates, two turnarounds delivering +50% EBITDA within 12 months and a 50% reduction in time-to-market — independent value creation practice across specialty chemicals, ingredients and FMCG. Covering the full value creation spectrum: strategy, commercial transformation, post-merger integration, turnaround & interim management, M&A advisory, innovation management and business model transformation. Selected engagements: Post-merger integration & turnaround — Led integration and strategic repositioning of two underperforming specialty chemicals businesses: +15% revenue and +50% EBITDA within 12 months through go-to-market strategy, commercial transformation and operational restructuring. M&A & investment advisory — Advised on 10+ transactions and greenfield projects across chemicals, nutraceuticals, pharma and food ingredients: commercial due diligence, market entry strategy, operational setup, best practice benchmarking. Innovation & R&D process redesign — Restructured and deployed end-to-end product development process at a PE-backed CPG company, reducing time-to-market by 50%. Business model transformation — Repositioned a cosmetic ingredients company from product supplier to specialized contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), expanding addressable market, improving value proposition and margin profile. Business development & partnerships — Brokered cross-border strategic partnerships and investor connections across Europe, Asia and Africa, supporting market entry and deal flow.

"Corporate Strategy in a Digital World" - English track. In the spring semester 2024, achieved 100% positive ratings from the class, which overperformed in the final exams, providing 50% of the top10 grades for only 15% of the students.

Took a highly commoditized ingredients category and shifted 30%+ of volume to premium — while simultaneously closing a €100M+ international biotech partnership, launching 5+ innovation initiatives and divesting a manufacturing asset. P&L ownership across Vitamin C and Vitamin B5 — human nutrition, dietary supplements, animal nutrition, beauty & personal care, pharmaceuticals and food & beverage — leading cross-functional teams across commercial, supply chain, regulatory and technical functions. Selected achievements: Premiumization & commercial transformation — Designed and executed a premiumization strategy for the European Vitamin C portfolio, growing premium product share by 30%+ within two years in a category defined by commodity price competition. Innovation & product development — Initiated and led the most significant innovation push in the Vitamin C category in over a decade: 5+ new product initiatives, two new technology platforms, one game-changing specialty form brought to market. Business development & partnerships — Structured and negotiated a strategic partnership for a next-generation biotech-based Vitamin B5 process with a leading Asian producer (€100M+ p.a. expected value). Portfolio restructuring & divestiture — Organized wind-down and divestiture of DSM's Chinese Vitamin C manufacturing asset, managing operational, commercial and stakeholder dimensions through to completion. Key account & crisis management — Maintained and strengthened major customer relationships through supply shortage and significant input-driven price increase episodes, coordinating cross-functional solutions to restore full supply.

As strategy lead on DSM's corporate development team: took projects from initial diagnosis through executive alignment, deal execution and integration delivery — working directly with leadership teams across the business. Dual mandate spanning corporate strategy, business unit strategy or topical strategic initiatives and the full M&A lifecycle — acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures. Constantly embedded with executive teams and business units on the ground: owning the analysis, stress-testing assumptions with operational teams, and driving alignment from working level to board. Selected engagements: M&A, buy side — Core architect of DSM's €1bn acquisition of Erber Group (2020): target identification, strategic rationale, stakeholder alignment, due diligence and negotiation. Subsequently led post-merger integration of Romer Labs, Erber's analytical devices subsidiary — merged with DSM's diagnostics business, above-expectation synergies delivered. M&A, sell side — Led preparation of the €1.6bn divestiture of DSM's Resins & Functional Materials division to Covestro (2021): business plan, management presentation, full senior stakeholder mobilization across the division, carve-out operations. Business unit strategy — Designed and implemented a growth and profitability improvement strategy for DSM's food enzymes business, delivering margin uplift without incremental capex. Impact investing & venture — Corporate liaison and M&A lead for Africa Improved Foods, DSM's agribusiness social venture (World Food Programme supply chain); strategy sparring partner for DSM Venturing, DSM's corporate venture capital fund. DSM is a global life sciences and specialty chemicals company operating across food & beverages, pharmaceuticals, animal health & feed, beauty and personal care and dietary supplements — with a strong emphasis on sustainability and biotech-driven innovation.

"Independent of the Year" — advisory practice spanning turnaround management, market entry strategy and commercial transformation, delivered directly and in collaboration with leading consulting firms. Selected engagements: Turnaround & operational improvement — Led turnaround in the Industrials (tool steel manufacturing) sector, delivering measurable improvements in operational steering, cost structure and profit margins and laying the groundwork for a complete successful restructuring. Market entry & international expansion — Designed and implemented a market entry strategy for an international real estate group, supporting successful expansion into two new markets. Recognised with an "Independent of the Year" Award. Startup advisory & commercial transformation — Advised early-stage companies on growth strategy, business development and fundraising, through to hands-on support on sales performance and commercial execution.

Private Equity Performance Improvement practice at Alvarez & Marsal — operational due diligence, post-merger integration and turnaround delivery for European PE funds across industrial and healthcare sectors. Selected engagements: Post-merger integration & turnaround — Led operating model transformation and restructuring in the private healthcare sector following an acquisition: process optimisation, cost reduction and efficiency improvements delivered in close collaboration with management teams on the ground. Transaction advisory, buy side — Delivered operational and commercial due diligence and acquisition strategy support for European private equity funds across B2B industrial goods, entertainment and hospitality: investment decisions and value creation planning.

€100m in operational efficiency and cost reduction initiatives — strategy consulting across food industry restructuring, supply chain transformation and retail growth strategy at EY-Parthenon's French practice build-out. Selected engagements: Operating model restructuring — Oversaw the manufacturing workstream of a large-scale restructuring effort in the food industry, including operational efficiency and cost reduction initiatives totalling €100m in annual EBITDA impact. Supply chain & S&OP transformation — Conducted an end-to-end supply chain and S&OP process overhaul for a major specialty meat processor: significant improvements in planning accuracy, inventory management and cost reductions. Growth strategy — Designed a market share growth strategy for a major retailer, delivering several points of market share gain over three years.

Strategy and hands-on execution in a frontier market context — founded, built and ran a boutique consulting and interim management firm in Ghana, then delivered: 300% output increase, +25% revenue within two months, value creation opportunities worth 400% of EBITDA. Built from the ground up in Accra, Ghana: team of four employees and an extended freelancer network, serving both local African businesses and European clients in the private equity space — combining strategic advisory with direct interim management mandates, including co-management of a manufacturing facility. Selected engagements: Operational turnaround — Increased output of a Ghanaian animal feed manufacturer by 300% through operational restructuring and performance improvement, applying Lean management and TOC methodologies. Commercial transformation — Reorganised the salesforce and deployed CRM and VMI systems for a major local electrical equipment distributor: +25% revenue growth within two months. Data-driven management — Converted a street lighting equipment supplier to data-driven management practices, identifying actionable value creation opportunities worth 400% of current EBITDA. Agricultural supply chain — Designed and operationalised a contract farming scheme coordinating 3,000 farmers across palm, teak and tomato value chains.

Four years at Mars & Co — a global strategy firm built on full industry exclusivity and deep operational embedding. Results across automotive, consumer goods and industrials: 8x increase in ROCE, €20M gross profit improvement per plant, a division turned into its group's most profitable unit. Operational and commercial strategy focus: factory management, salesforce organisation, go-to-market design, competitive analysis and quantitative modelling, focus on Industrials, FMCG, Energy and Commodities. Selected achievements: Automotive strategy — Defined and implemented a divisional strategy for a major automotive supplier: 8x increase in ROCE. Factory optimisation — Developed a factory scheduling algorithm delivering €20M gross profit improvement per plant. Commercial transformation — Redesigned the direct sales and distribution model of a consumer goods division, turning it into the group's most profitable unit.

Organization, preparation and attending of meetings bringing together industry representatives and members of parliament. Policy research. Argument preparation.

Support to the General Manager on an internal re-organisation project (implementation of a new IT system, analysis and rework of pricing and inventory management)

Strategy consulting work primarily for the public sector, specifically tourism (4 months analyzing the Moroccan tourism industry) and new cities (business plan modelling)

Two sets of different responsibilities: The first one was day-to-day executive management of the organization, including team management (up to 4 local employees), liaising with French and Ghanaian companies and public sectors and running its business support services. The second one included analyzing the Chamber's business situation and place within the French-Ghanaian business community in order to enable the board to reach a conclusion on the institution's future.

Organization, preparation and attending of meetings bringing together industry representatives and members of parliament. Policy research. Argument preparation.