André Leysen facts for kids
André Leysen (born June 11, 1927 – died July 11, 2015) was a well-known Belgian businessman. In 1951, he married Anne Ahlers. Her family owned a shipping company in Bremen, Germany. André and Anne had four children: Bettina, Christian, Thomas, and Sabina.
André Leysen's Career Journey
Early Business Life
André Leysen started his career in 1952. He worked for the shipping company Ahlers N.V. in Antwerp. This company belonged to his wife's family. He stayed there until 1976.
In 1974, he joined the supervisory board of Agfa-Gevaert. This is a big group known for imaging products. From 1978 to 1984, he led their executive committee. After that, he became the chairman of their supervisory board.
Leading Companies
In 1976, André Leysen helped start the VUM. This company took over newspapers from the Standaard group. The Standaard group had faced financial trouble. He led VUM until 1978. Later, his son Thomas took over this role.
From 1990 to 1994, he was part of the board of directors for the Treuhandanstalt in Germany. This organization helped manage state-owned companies after Germany's reunification.
Other Important Roles
André Leysen held many important positions in large companies. Here are some of them:
- He was a director at Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW). This is a famous car company. He worked there from 1988 to 1997.
- He became Vice-Chairman of BMW AG from 1997 to 1998.
- He was a member of the advisory board for Deutsche Bank AG. This is a major bank. He served from 1988 to 1999.
- He was Vice-Chairman of Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. This company makes electronics. He held this role from 1983 to 1999.
- He was a director at Hapag-Lloyd AG. This is a large shipping company. He worked there from 1981 to 1999.
- He was also a director at Bayer AG until 2002. Bayer is a well-known science and healthcare company.
- He served as a director for Deutsche Telekom AG. This is a big telecommunications company.
- He was a member of the Supervisory Board of E.on AG. This is an energy company.
- He was a director at Schenker AG. This company specializes in logistics and transport.
