Meuer has been with the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft since 1992 and has held various management positions since then. Most recently, he was Director of the Finance, Accounting and Business Plan Department. Among other things, he was commercially responsible for the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft's financial volume of over two billion euros, further developed the annual financial statements and set up asset management. Meuer has been involved in internal digitalization projects since the beginning, for example in document management and corporate resource planning.

"Andreas Meuer is a proven expert in finance, accounting and business processes at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. We are convinced that he will ensure the solid financing of Europe's largest organization for applied research in the future," said Chairman Prof. Heinz Jörg Fuhrmann, explaining the Fraunhofer Senate's decision. "At the same time, he has the best qualifications to play a decisive role in shaping the digital transformation and its organizational implications."

"Excellent applied research requires a stable financial foundation. Advancing digitalization also offers great opportunities for the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. As a pioneer in this field, we aim to offer our customers expertise and know-how. To this end, we must also leverage the potential internally in the best possible way and drive forward the digitalization of our business processes in a targeted manner," said Fraunhofer President Prof. Reimund Neugebauer on the election. "I am delighted that we have gained such a high-profile internal expert as a member of the Executive Board in Andreas Meuer. He has known our company for 25 years and has the best qualifications to drive forward both important tasks in this role."

"I would like to thank the Senate for the trust they have placed in me and look forward to my new role on the Executive Board. In the coming years, I want to ensure that Fraunhofer continues to develop as successfully financially as before. At the same time, I intend to establish the most efficient digital administration among research organizations. It should adapt flexibly to changing conditions and create added value: Routine tasks can be automated and more complex issues can be supported by assistance systems based on artificial intelligence (AI). This makes it possible to reduce the workload, which benefits quality assurance and customer requirements," said Meuer, summarizing his most important goals. kp