Best of European Business Award in Berlin

• Christian Streiff, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, takes prize for exceptional corporate and environmental responsibility
• Joël Saveuse, member of the Management Board of Metro AG and CEO of real,- SB Warenhaus GmbH, honored for his outstanding contribution to German-French business relations
• Fresenius SE singled out for strong growth and exemplary management performance in response to the global economic crisis
• Roland Berger CEO Professor Burkhard Schwenker: Europe well placed to pass the "stress test" of the current crisis

This evening, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants presented one company and two managers with the Best of European Business Awards for outstanding achievements. At the French embassy in Berlin, the international strategy consultancy announced the winners of the German national competition as part of the pan-European initiative. CNN, Financial Times Deutschland and manager magazin are the official media partners to the event.

The global economic crisis is putting European companies to a tough test – and also serves as the backdrop for the fourth annual Best of European Business Awards. This year's competition, launched by a global leading strategy consultancy with deep European roots, takes a positive stance in the midst of the economic crisis. "Today – more than ever – Europe counts," noted CEO Burkhard Schwenker. Obviously, he explained, "to overcome the current crisis, we must strengthen Europe's domestic market." Professor Schwenker issued a plea to prevent protectionism – above all within Europe's borders. He stressed that positive cooperation between France and Germany is crucial if progress is to be made in key European issues. France, he said, was therefore the ideal partner country for this year's Best of European Business competition.

As doubts about the American management model grow, Europe must bring its unique strengths to bear, Professor Schwenker said, adding that Europe has the capability to formulate a superior management model of its own. He also said, Europe still has to show that it can pass the stress test of the current economic crisis. "Yet Europe has what it takes."

A recent Roland Berger study investigated the business performance of top listed companies around the world since 1998. The study found that Europe's companies have strengthened their position over the past decade. 32% of the 1,000 largest companies are headquartered in Europe (a gain of 1.3 percentage points) and generate a full 42% of the top 1,000's profits (a gain of 5 percentage points).

In a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Peter Frey, head of ZDF's studio in the German capital, Professor Roland Berger, French ambassador Bernard de Montferrand and prize winners Joël Saveuse and Stephan Sturm, CFO of Fresenius SE, highlighted the strengths of European managers and companies – but also identified areas where further action is needed.

Jury members drawn from business, academia and media

A jury with an impressive lineup picked this year's German award winners: Professor Burkhard Schwenker (CEO, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants), Bernard de Montferrand (ambassador, Republic of France), Steffen Klusmann (spokesman, chief editing staff of G+J Wirtschaftsmedien), Dr. Arno Balzer (editor-in-chief, manager magazin) and Professor Klaus Spremann (University of St. Gallen).

Jury members Dr. Arno Balzer and Steffen Klusmann hosted the awards ceremony.

About the winners

Christian Streiff, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, was presented with the "European Award for Corporate and Environmental Responsibility". The jury explicitly honored both Streiff's personal commitment and that of the company he represents. In the view of the jurors, "he provides the rare example of a truly European management career". Having grown up close to the Franco German border, Streiff went on to hold positions in Italy, France and Germany. He speaks German, English and Italian in addition to his native French. Christian Streiff's strategic decisions have been instrumental in sharpening one of PSA Peugeot Citroën's key competitive advantages: the Group’s European leadership in environmental friendly cars with low CO2-emissions.

The award for a manager who has made an outstanding contribution to German-French business relations went to Joël Saveuse, a member of the Management Board of Metro AG. Cooperation between Germany and France is the cornerstone of modern Europe. "However, this cooperation will work only if it is lived out in society – not least in business," the jury noted. In the course of the competition, the jury became convinced of Joël Saveuse's profound personal commitment to the cause of close German-French cooperation. Saveuse has worked alternately in France and Germany since 1973. "His personality has made him an ambassador for France in Germany, but equally an ambassador for Germany in France," the jury asserted.

Fresenius SE, a German healthcare group with a global reach, won the prize for growth and outstanding management performance in response to the global economic crisis. Growth is a strategic necessity. Forward-looking managers set themselves apart from the crowd by moving quickly to counter crisis situations. Fresenius SE is second to none in the way it meets these criteria. "Even in recent months, solid financing, an intelligent acquisition strategy and the astute expansion of its innovative capabilities have made Fresenius SE crisis-proof," the jury said in stating the reasons for its choice. The company was thus able to report excellent figures for fiscal 2008 and a positive outlook for the current year.

The manuscript of Professor Schwenker's speech and a detailed explanation of the reasons for the jury's choices are available from Roland Berger on request.