Gunnar Clausen and Jörg Krütten new co-CEO's of Simon Kucher

Simon Kucher has announced a change of its top leadership team, with Gunnar Clausen and Jörg Krütten appointed as co-CEO’s of the global commercial strategy consulting firm.
Having jointly led Simon Kucher for a period of six years, during which they steered the firm through yet another chapter of growth, Mark Billige and Andreas von der Gathen have per the 1st of January passed on the baton to a new leadership team. Continuing a tradition which goes back all the way to 2009, when Georg Tacke and Klaus Hilleke first took the reins together, the firm has once again installed a duo at the top: Europe-based partners Gunnar Clausen and Jörg Krütten.
Established in 1985 in Germany, Simon-Kucher is a consulting firm that focuses on what it describes as the ‘sunny side of growth’ – commercial strategy, sales & marketing, and pricing. The firm has a team of more than 2,000 employees in over 30 countries, with its traditional consulting model increasingly underpinned by a digital products business.
“Our mission is to help companies achieve sustainable growth,” said Gunnar Clausen, who prior to stepping up served as Managing Partner for Central and Northern Europe. “Even in times of economic challenges or crisis. In such times, innovative solutions are needed. We help companies develop growth strategies and leverage new growth potential with our commercial excellence expertise.”
Jörg Krütten, who previously was Managing Partner for the Healthcare & Life Sciences practice, added: “We achieve this by combining our expertise in pricing and commercial excellence with data-based strategies, artificial intelligence and digital know-how. Better growth is more than just profit maximization. We empower companies to grow sustainably by not only increasing profitability, but also by holistically addressing the most pressing challenges.”
Next chapter
As they step into their five-year term in the office, Clausen and Krütten said that the firm’s partner group has handed them the task to guide the company through its “next chapter of growth”.
Regionally, Europe remains the firm’s powerhouse market in terms of total sales, although the regions of North America, the Middle East and Asia have been earmarked as the largest growth drivers for the years ahead. From a functional perspective, the consultancy anticipates strong demand for its expertise in commercial excellence, pricing and digital transformation.
“Simon-Kucher is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. We are taking over a piece of history, and look forward to be contributing to a new one,” said Clausen and Krütten.
About the leaders
Gunnar Clausen has been with Simon-Kucher since 2006, when he was one of the founders of the software and internet practice. In 2020, he was appointed Managing Partner for Central and Northern Europe. Based out of Cologne, Clausen specializes in growth and competitive strategies, go-to-market, product & pricing strategies, and digital transformation.
Jörg Krütten re-joined Simon-Kucher in 2004, since then playing a key role in the company’s expansion in the healthcare sector. He specialises in strategic business development, licensing and acquisitions, marketing and pricing. For the past ten years, Luxembourg-based Krütten served as Global Managing Partner for Healthcare & Life Sciences.