Krannert alum Juergen Grossmann, the CEO of RWE AG in Germany, was awarded the Karmarsch Medal at Leibniz University Hannover in December. The medal of honor has been awarded for the past 86 years by the Friends of Hannover University “for personalities with outstanding services to technology and the economy.”
The ceremony drew an audience of 800, including dignitaries such as former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Leibniz University President Erich Barke, and Joerg Bode, Minister of Economics and Transport for Lower Saxony. Grossmann, who earned a master’s degree from the Krannert School in 1974 and honorary doctorate from Purdue in 2000, was honored for his entrepreneurial excellence as well as his social responsibility—Schroeder called him “a warm-hearted and extremely hard-working man.”
Schroeder and Grossmann were instrumental in the 1999 launch of the GISMA Business School in Hannover, which rates among Europe’s top business schools. Grossmann has been the sole shareholder of Georgsmarienhuette GmbH since 1997.