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Günther H. Oettinger
Former Vice-President of the European Commission
Günther H. Oettinger (1953), a German lawyer and politician, was member of the European Commission for almost ten years, after a career of more than thirty years in German politics. For a long period, he combined these activities with a practice in law, auditing and taxation.
In the Commission Juncker (2014-2019), he held the portfolios of Budget & Human Resources from 2017 until 2019, and Digital Economy and Society in the period 2014-2016, while also being a Vice-President of the European Commission in 2014. In the second European Commission presided by José Manuel Barroso (2010 – 2014), Mr Oettinger was Commissioner for Energy.
From 2005-2010, Mr Oettinger was Prime Minister of the State of Baden-Württemberg in Germany, after having been active for the CDU in this State for almost thirty years, including, inter alia, Chairman from 2005 until 2009, member of the regional Parliament (“Landtag”) since 1984, and leader of the CDU Landtag group from 1991.
Among his other activities for the CDU were member of the Presidium and the Federal Executive Committee from 2005 until 2020, Co-Chairman of the Commission on the Modernisation of Federal-Länder Financial Relations (Federalism Reform II) in 2007 – 2009, Chairman of the Media Policy Expert Group (2006 – 2010), and Chairman of the Federal Committee on Media Policy (1999 – 2006).
In 1982, he started his legal career, first as assessor, then as lawyer and managing director of an auditing and tax consultancy, until 2005.
Mr Oettinger studied law and economics, and graduated in law, in Tübingen.
Daniel Mitrenga
Head of European Affairs and Director at the German business association DIE FAMILIENUNTERNEHMER
Daniel Mitrenga is Head of European Affairs and Director at the German business
association DIE FAMILIENUNTERNEHMER
Based in Brussels he is a member of the Management Committee of EFB and holds a
Ph.D. on European Integration. The news provider table media mentioned him as TOP 100 Heads in European policy.
Matthieu Leclercq
Founder of For Talents
EX CEO of Decathlon
Founder of For Talents and son of Decathlon ‘s founder, Matthieu Leclercq learnt his trade in the family business which he oversaw the growth (doubling in 6 years). He was Head of The Supervisory Board. Matthieu is also at the start-up of new concepts and new businesses, like O ‘tera, for example, a network of fresh products food stores (quickest to Market)
Nicholas H. Vetter
CEO and Managing Director of OncoBeta GmbH
Nicholas H. Vetter is CEO and Managing Director of OncoBeta GmbH, a German headquartered Biotech focused on novel oncology therapies in the emerging field of radiopharmaceuticals and radioisotope based medical device therapeutics.
Nick is also Managing Director of RV Invest GmbH, an early stage Biotech VC investing into early stage novel therapeutic development companies in Europe and the United States of America. Nick carries a Bachelor in Integrative Physiology from the University of Colorado – Boulder and an MBA from SDA Bocconi.
Nick is part of the 3rd Generation of the Vetter Pharma owner family and intends to play an active role in the company.
Margherita Marchi
Head of New Business and Member of the Board at Finint Investments
Margherita Marchi is a financial expert and second-generation representative of her family business, Banca Finint Group. The company, officially known as Banca Finanziaria Internazionale, was founded in 1980 and specialized in financial services. It currently employs over 700 people with over 12 billion of asset under management, has a turnover of €143 million.
Since May 2023, Margherita is serving as a Board Member of AIDAF – the Italian Association of Family Businesses and she is also board member of Finint Investments, the asset management company of Banca Finint Group, where she currently covers the role of Hed of Corporate Development. From 2021 to 2024 she held a Board position at Brussels South Charleroi Airport, reflecting her experience in governance and European-level engagement. Due to her financial expertise and cross-sector experience she has a great knowledge of international representation.
Erik Stern
Deputy Director, FBN Sweden
Erik is sixth generation family business owner and has worked with and advised business owning families via Family Business Network since 2017. With a background in political science and aspirations of entrepreneurship, Erik has over the years gained a diverse experience working with think tanks, political parties, as a business developer and more.
Erik has a mission to try to help people, families and organizations to positively impact our world as much as possible
Today he also serves on the board of the Ragnar Söderberg Foundation alongside four other sixth-generation family members. The foundation is the largest owner of Ratos, a publicly traded business group founded in Stockholm in 1866. He is also co-founder of Ymner and Y2, an organization and fund with a mission to support early deep tech innovation in Sweden.
Jan Kornelis van Oord
President of European Family Business
Jan Kornelis van Oord retired in 2017 as deputy manager director of the Van Oord family holding and investment company MerweOord BV. The parent family business was established 155 years ago.
Before entering the family holding company he had a career in shipping, shipbuilding and transport. He held supervisory board positions in family businessesand was board member and chairman of an NGO for many years. Presently he is Chairman of two BCorp impact investment funds.
Since June 2025, Jan Kornelis is the President of European Family Businesses.
Jesús Casado
Secretary General of European Family Business
Jesús is familiar with family succession as he went through a non-expected transfer in his own family which led to the sale of his grandparents’ company.
His educational path is as direct reflection of his interest in diverse disciplines and cultures: after studying a degree in Law and Economics from Universidad Pontificia Comillas (ICADE-Madrid), he completed his tertiary education with post-graduate studies at Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen (Germany), at the Spanish Diplomatic School (Madrid) and at the Institut de Sciences Politiques (Paris). He then went on to earn an MBA from ESADE Business School and a Master in Systemic Therapy and Consulting (Neuro Linguistic Programming).
After starting his career as a lawyer for Telefónica in 1998 focusing on international contracts and M&A, Jesús joined the Spanish Family Business Association (IEF). He quickly moved up from Regional Director to International Director and then to Deputy Director General.
In 2006, Jesús was appointed as the Secretary General of European Family Businesses (EFB). Based in Brussels, EFB represents all the National European Family Businesses associations and aims at promoting policies that are conductive to long-term entrepreneurship in Europe. Its members, more than 10.000 family business owners, directly represent more than 10% of the European GDP.
In addition to his role at EFB, Jesús has served as a member of the Board of the Family Firm Institute (FFI) and as a member of the Executive Committee of Family Business Network (FBN-I). Jesús has also been an Academic Collaborator at ESADE and EAE, focusing on Governance and Succession issues. He is family business advisor at Generation 6, member of the Board of several Foundations and a frequent speaker at family business conferences and summits in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
Jesús is based in Madrid (Spain) and is fluent in Spanish, English, French and German.
José Germano Pinto Barreira Rêgo de Sousa
President of Association of Empresas Familiares
José Germano de Sousa, MD, is a Clinical Pathologist and executive with over two decades of experience in hospital and private laboratory management.
A graduate of NOVA Medical School, he completed his residency in Clinical Pathology at Hospital Fernando Fonseca, where he later led key diagnostic areas such as Biochemistry and Immunology.
Since 2001, he has held executive roles in several leading medical laboratory groups in Portugal, including as shareholder and CEO of the Centro de Medicina Laboratorial Germano de Sousa, and as Clinical Pathology Director for CUF Hospitals and Clinics.
He is also Assistant Professor at NOVA Medical School and an advocate for high-quality, accessible diagnostic medicine. Married and father of four, he represents the second generation of a family deeply committed to innovation and excellence in healthcare.
Daniel Waldenström
Professor of Economics, Research Institute of Industrial Economics, Stockholm.
Daniel Waldenström is Professor of Economics at the Research Institute of Industrial Economics in Stockholm. His research focuses on income and wealth distribution and taxation, and has appeared in leading scientific journals and books.
He has taught at Uppsala University, the Paris School of Economics, and UCLA. He is currently fellow at the CEPR, IZA, CESifo, WIL, and been visiting scholar at the Becker Friedman Institute, University of Chicago.
Waldenström has acted as advisor to the Swedish Minister of Finance in the Council of Advisors between 2021 and 2024, and in a special council for Corona Crisis Policies. He has long-standing experience as advisor to public agencies, the OECD and the European Commission. He is a frequent commentator in European and Global media on policy and research matters.
Udo J. Vetter
President of European Family Businesses
President of Vetter Pharma Fertigung GmbH & Co, 2nd generation
Udo J. Vetter studied clinical pharmacy at the University of Seattle. After university, he worked for five years as a pharmacist at the pharma firm Schering-Plough Corp. (Now Merck & Co. Inc.), and set up production facilities in Puerto Rico. Subsequently, he was, among other things, Vice President for licensing and production at Martec Inc., and President of Vetter Pharma-Turm Inc. Since 1987, he holds various senior management positions at Vetter. Moreover, Udo J. Vetter is chairman of the board of the Vetter Pharma since 2008. He is the chairman of Isotope Technologies Munich SE (ITM) and board member of Gland in India.
In 2003, he established the investment company UV-Cap. Udo J. Vetter is a member of the expert association GPMLF of the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) and since 2019 he is President of European Family Businesses (EFB).