Tobias Merl started his professional career as a management consultant at the Competence Center for Medium-Sized Industry (CCMI) and did his doctorate in Management & Engineering before he moved to Pfannenberg in 2016 as Business Development Manager. In this role he was responsible for the development of product management and the development of new business areas. He has been a member of the management board as Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) since 2020 and has made a significant contribution to further increasing the company's ability to innovate. Merl is an expert in innovation strategies and transformation processes.

As part of the Pfannenberg family, Merl will continue the history of the traditional company in the next generation. The focus here is on the vision “One Pfannenberg for Our Customers”, with which the company focuses on its strengths of generating innovations in close customer contact. “Specialized teams will ensure that the needs and concerns of our customers are clearly placed in the foreground for each product area and that advice, products and services are geared towards individual added value. With the support of digitization, we can offer a unique customer experience worldwide, ”says Merl, commenting on the group's further strategic direction.