Stefan Paul

Overview

Stefan Paul
Born	1969 (age 56–57) Munich, Germany
Citizenship	German
Education	Apprenticeship as freight forwarder (Speditionskaufmann)
Occupation	Business executive
Employer	Kuehne + Nagel International AG
Known for	Chief executive officer of Kuehne + Nagel International AG
Title	Chief Executive Officer
Term	CEO of Kuehne + Nagel International AG (2022–present)
Predecessor	Detlef Trefzger
Board member of	Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce; International Business Leaders Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai
Spouse	Married
Children	2

🌍 Stefan Paul (born 1969) is a German business executive who serves as chief executive officer (CEO) of Kuehne + Nagel International AG, a global logistics group active in sea, air, road and contract logistics. Born in Munich and trained as a freight forwarder in Germany’s vocational system, he built his career from entry-level operational roles to senior management, including a long spell at DHL before rejoining Kuehne + Nagel to lead its road logistics activities and, later, the entire group. His tenure as CEO, which began in August 2022, has been marked by an emphasis on organic growth, digitalisation and sustainability amid a sharp post-pandemic normalization in global freight markets.

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Early life and education

🧒 Munich upbringing. Paul grew up in Munich, Germany, in a middle-class environment that placed a premium on practical experience and early responsibility. Rather than pursue a university degree, he chose a vocational path and entered a freight forwarding apprenticeship (Speditionskaufmann) as a teenager, gaining first-hand exposure to the mechanics of transport, warehousing and customs procedures. His formative years coincided with the late Cold War and the expansion of global trade, and later interviews describe how this backdrop sharpened his interest in cross-border commerce and supply chains.

🎓 Vocational start at Kuehne + Nagel. After completing his apprenticeship, Paul joined Kuehne + Nagel in Germany in 1990 at around 21 years of age, starting in operational freight activities before moving into sales and customer-facing roles. Colleagues from that period recall a young manager who, in his own words, “disliked immobility and wanted to get things moving”, capturing his preference for hands-on problem solving and continuous improvement. In 1997, after seven years with the company, he made a pivotal decision to leave Kuehne + Nagel for a rival firm, a move that would expose him to new corporate cultures and test his leadership in more complex settings.

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Career

🚚 Rise through DHL. In 1997, Paul joined the freight division of DHL (then DHL Danzas Air & Ocean), beginning a 16-year period away from Kuehne + Nagel. He advanced quickly, becoming general manager for key accounts and industry sectors in Germany while refining a strongly customer-centric approach to contract design and service quality. During the early 2000s he played a role in integrating British logistics group Exel into Deutsche Post DHL, serving from 2003 as head of marketing and sales for Exel in Central and Eastern Europe and later assuming broader global responsibilities in freight management. By 2007 he sat on DHL’s Freight Management Board, and in 2010 he was appointed CEO of DHL Freight Germany, where he was credited in internal publications with revitalising the road transport business through cost discipline and tailored solutions for sectors such as automotive and pharmaceuticals.

🔄 Return to Kuehne + Nagel. In 2013, Kuehne + Nagel recruited Paul back as a member of its management board with responsibility for the Road & Rail Logistics unit, an area the company acknowledged had “not always run smoothly” in prior years. Drawing on his DHL experience, he refocused the division on full-truckload and part-truckload services and on a limited set of vertical industries, simplifying processes and using digital tools to improve transparency and network utilisation. Within a few years the road logistics segment was reported to have returned to profitability and to be growing with double-digit rates in some markets, while Paul also assumed responsibility for Kuehne + Nagel’s global sales organisation, underlining his reputation inside the group as a client-focused turnaround specialist.

🧭 Strategic architect and CEO succession. By the late 2010s, Paul had become one of the key architects of Kuehne + Nagel’s broader strategy beyond its traditional strengths in sea and air freight, advocating integrated logistics offerings and more data-driven decision-making. When the board announced in November 2021 that he would succeed Detlef Trefzger as CEO, chairman Jörg Wolle and principal shareholder Klaus-Michael Kühne highlighted his long-term perspective and “outstanding” leadership within the organisation, presenting the transition as a continuation rather than a break in corporate culture. Paul formally took over as CEO on 1 August 2022 following a structured handover designed to preserve strategic continuity and the company’s customer-focused ethos.

📊 Roadmap 2026 and stance on growth. As chief executive, Paul set out a strategic plan known as Roadmap 2026, intended as a stepping stone toward a “Vision 2030” in which Kuehne + Nagel aims to be “the most trusted supply chain partner supporting a sustainable future”. The roadmap centres on deepening the group’s core forwarding activities, expanding in contract logistics, and embedding environmental, social and governance (ESG) objectives in commercial decisions. While several competitors have pursued large transformational acquisitions, Paul has adopted a more selective attitude toward scale: when Danish rival DSV moved to acquire DB Schenker in 2024, he confirmed that Kuehne + Nagel had evaluated the opportunity but decided against bidding, arguing that growth should be “about becoming better, not necessarily bigger”. Under his leadership, the company has remained open to bolt-on deals but has emphasised organic, profitable growth over headline-driven consolidation.

🤖 Digitalisation and focus on Asia. Paul has consistently linked the roadmap to a wider digital transformation of Kuehne + Nagel, describing the company's objective as building a “digital ecosystem” that connects customers, carriers and internal operations. He has promoted the use of advanced visibility platforms, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence in areas such as port logistics and network planning; in 2025, speaking at a forum in Shanghai, he outlined how AI-based tools could improve the efficiency and resilience of major hubs by integrating real-time data from multiple stakeholders. In parallel, Paul has repeatedly pointed to Asia—particularly China and Southeast Asia—as a key region for future growth, reflecting shifts in manufacturing and consumer demand and supported by regular visits to markets such as Vietnam and India.

📈 Performance in a volatile cycle. Paul’s tenure as CEO began during an exceptional phase for global logistics, as supply chain bottlenecks and elevated freight rates supported record results in 2022: Kuehne + Nagel’s net turnover rose about 20% to CHF 39.4 billion that year, with earnings far above pre-pandemic levels. As capacity normalised and freight rates fell in 2023, the group’s revenue declined to CHF 23.8 billion and net profit to CHF 1.5 billion, a roughly 48% drop from the prior year’s peak. Paul has stressed in annual reports and interviews that, despite the reversal from pandemic highs, profitability remained well above pre-2020 benchmarks and that the company aims to outgrow global GDP by roughly 1.5 times in terms of shipment volumes over the medium term.

📉 Shareholder returns and investor expectations. On public markets, Kuehne + Nagel’s share price surged during the 2020–2021 logistics boom but subsequently retreated as industry conditions normalised, producing an estimated 22% negative total return over the three years to early 2025. Analysts have noted that, while the underlying business remains solid, the stock has lagged some peers, notably DSV, which expanded aggressively through acquisitions. Paul has responded by reiterating his commitment to the existing roadmap and urging managers not to be distracted by comparisons with competitors, a stance characterised by one industry commentary as focusing “solely on [Kuehne + Nagel’s] own targets” rather than on league-table rankings.

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Financials and wealth

💼 Executive compensation. As CEO of a large publicly listed group, Paul receives a remuneration package combining fixed salary with performance-based incentives. For the 2024 financial year his total compensation was reported at about CHF 3.8 million, roughly 10% higher than in the previous year. The package consists of a base salary of CHF 1.2 million and a larger variable component in the form of annual bonus and long-term share-based awards, in line with the company’s policy of tying around two-thirds of top management pay to performance metrics. Commentators have observed that his pay is relatively high for the sector, at close to four times the median CEO compensation for large Swiss transportation firms, and this level has been debated at shareholder meetings given recent share price performance.

💰 Share ownership and estimated wealth. Paul’s remuneration is supplemented by his direct holdings in Kuehne + Nagel shares; by the end of 2024 he reportedly owned about 25,000 shares in the company, a stake valued at several million Swiss francs at prevailing prices. Corporate disclosures emphasise that equity-based incentives are intended to align management with long-term shareholder interests, and analysts have cited Paul’s personal stake as giving him “skin in the game”. Public sources do not provide formal estimates of his overall net worth, and he does not feature on major rich lists, but his financial profile is nonetheless substantial compared with most professional managers while remaining modest next to that of majority shareholder Klaus-Michael Kühne.

🌐 Board roles and external activities. Beyond his executive duties, Paul contributes to selected business and policy forums. Kuehne + Nagel’s annual reports list him as a member of the board of directors of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce, a platform through which he engages on transatlantic trade issues. Internationally, he has served on the International Business Leaders Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai, providing input on logistics and digital infrastructure and on the goal of making Shanghai one of the world’s most efficient ports. Unlike some peers, he has not accumulated a large portfolio of external corporate directorships, which observers attribute to a preference for concentrating on Kuehne + Nagel and on a small number of industry-relevant advisory roles.

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Personal life and leadership style

🏔️ Family and outdoor interests. Public company publications describe Paul as a down-to-earth and energetic figure whose personal interests are closely tied to the outdoors. He is married and has children, and a 2013 profile from Kuehne + Nagel’s in-house magazine depicted him spending free time with “his wife, his son and the family dog”, often in alpine settings. Skiing is a long-standing passion: in winter he takes to the slopes when schedules allow, and in his younger years he supplemented his income as a ski instructor, an experience that colleagues say honed both his coaching skills and his appetite for calculated risk.

🚴 Active lifestyle and work–life balance. Since relocating to the area around Kuehne + Nagel’s headquarters in Schindellegi, Switzerland, Paul has taken advantage of what he has described as the region’s “high leisure value”, allowing him to mountain bike, hike and ski within minutes of leaving home. He is also a regular runner, and interviews suggest that he uses sport as a way to decompress and to reflect on strategic questions away from the office. His enthusiasm for outdoor activities frequently features in internal communications and is sometimes used to frame business analogies about preparation, endurance and adapting to changing terrain. This visibility, combined with his willingness to join staff events such as group rides or warehouse visits, has contributed to a reputation as an approachable leader among the group’s workforce of more than 78,000 employees in over 100 countries.

🤝 Management approach and philosophy. Paul’s leadership style draws heavily on his operational background. He is regarded as comfortable engaging with detailed freight schedules or IT dashboards when necessary, yet he also emphasises empowerment and decentralised decision-making across Kuehne + Nagel’s regional and product units. In commentary on corporate culture he has argued that companies talk “too much about strong leaders and too little about strong leadership cultures”, signalling his view that success depends on fostering initiative throughout the organisation rather than relying on a small group of executives. Accounts of his crisis management during events such as the COVID-19 logistics disruptions portray him as steady and collegial under pressure, while also prepared to insist on performance and ethical standards when expectations are not met.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Privacy and personal demeanour. Paul generally keeps his family life out of the public eye and rarely discusses personal matters in media interviews. A Bloomberg feature on Kuehne + Nagel’s major shareholder recorded him joking that, alongside his professional responsibilities, “my wife [and] two kids are at their peak period” of demanding attention, underscoring that he faces similar parenting challenges as other executives of his generation. Company insiders have described him as attentive to small gestures—such as handwritten notes to teams after major projects or informal conversations on warehouse floors—which, together with his low-profile social presence, have contributed to an internal image of a demanding but accessible leader.

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Controversies and challenges

⚖️ Debates over growth strategy and returns. Although Paul has avoided personal scandal, his strategic choices as CEO have been scrutinised amid the industry’s post-pandemic adjustment. As freight markets cooled and Kuehne + Nagel’s share price retreated, some investors questioned whether his relatively cautious approach to mergers and acquisitions risked allowing competitors such as DSV—which pursued large deals—to pull ahead in scale and market value. Commentators in trade publications reported murmurs that the group might “fall far behind” its Danish rival if it did not act more aggressively, and at the 2025 annual general meeting shareholders voiced concerns about a three-year total shareholder loss of more than 20%. Paul has defended his stance in internal messages and interviews, arguing that prioritising integration quality, margins and service over headline-driven expansion will deliver more sustainable returns over time.

✂️ Cost reduction measures. The normalisation of freight volumes after 2022 also forced Kuehne + Nagel to adjust its cost base. In late 2023 the company announced a programme aimed at saving around CHF 200 million annually, including consolidation of selected facilities, stricter hiring and efforts to automate routine tasks. Industry observers noted that such pruning carried the risk of undermining service quality if taken too far, with one logistics commentator characterising the group as potentially trying to “cut itself to greatness”. Paul has framed the measures instead as removing bureaucracy and freeing resources for investment in technology and customer solutions, emphasising that the company sought to avoid large-scale lay-offs while remaining competitive.

🌱 Sustainability agenda. Environmental and social expectations have been another source of pressure for logistics providers, and Paul has positioned Kuehne + Nagel as an advocate of more sustainable supply chains. Within the Roadmap 2026 strategy, the company’s “Living ESG” cornerstone focuses on reducing emissions intensity and offering lower-carbon services. In public remarks, including those at the Shanghai advisory council, Paul has linked Kuehne + Nagel’s plans to national “dual carbon” goals and described the firm’s efforts to expand the use of sustainable aviation fuel, biofuels in ocean freight, electric vehicles in road transport and carbon-visibility tools for shippers. On a podcast with Daimler Truck’s CEO, he discussed customer demand for zero-emission transportation and the practical challenges of scaling new technologies across global networks. While NGOs and investors have generally welcomed these initiatives, they also reflect the broader tension between decarbonisation ambitions and the constraints of today’s transport infrastructure.

🏛️ Italian labour probe. A more acute challenge emerged in April 2025, when Italian prosecutors seized approximately €33 million from Kuehne + Nagel’s local subsidiary as part of a wider investigation into alleged illegal labour subcontracting and tax evasion in the logistics sector. Authorities alleged that various companies, including Kuehne + Nagel Italy, had used third-party cooperatives to supply staff in ways that underpaid workers and avoided social security contributions, potentially amounting to worker exploitation. The company stated that it was “fully cooperating with the local authorities” and launched an internal review, with Paul reportedly reinforcing a zero-tolerance stance on unlawful employment practices and stepping up compliance training across European operations. Media coverage framed the case as part of a sector-wide crackdown rather than a single-company scandal, but it nonetheless posed reputational risks that management sought to contain by regularising contractor arrangements and strengthening oversight.

🛰️ Views on trade and inclusion. Paul has generally adopted a measured tone in public discussions of trade policy and geopolitics. In interviews he has argued that global trade has, “year after year”, helped reduce poverty and that, even during crises, freight “finds its way”, suggesting confidence in the adaptability of supply chains. Commenting on periodic tariff disputes between the United States and China, he observed in a 2025 Swiss interview that when tariffs were temporarily eased “the situation immediately relaxed” and major disruptions failed to materialise, even as cargo flows shifted toward Southeast Asia. Internally, annual reports and corporate communications credit him with promoting diversity and inclusion initiatives, including targets to increase the proportion of women in management, reflecting broader efforts to modernise the culture of what has historically been a male-dominated industry.

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Other information

🧱 From apprentice to global CEO. Paul’s career is frequently cited as an example of progression from vocational ranks to the top of a multinational corporation. The combination of early operational experience—loading trucks, managing documents and dealing directly with customers—and later strategic responsibilities has been portrayed in company literature as shaping a leadership style that remains grounded in the realities of day-to-day logistics. When evaluating proposals for warehouse automation or new routings, he has noted that his apprenticeship background helps him assess how changes will affect frontline staff and service quality, which in turn has contributed to credibility with employees and clients.

✈️ International exposure and mobility. Throughout his career, Paul has lived and worked in several countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom and Switzerland, and has led teams across all major regions. His participation in Shanghai’s International Business Leaders Advisory Council and frequent travel to emerging markets such as Vietnam and India have given him a close view of shifting global trade patterns and the role of digital infrastructure in logistics hubs. Colleagues and profiles describe him encouraging younger managers to take international assignments and to leave their comfort zones, mirroring his own decision in the 1990s to move from his first employer to a new environment and, later, to relocate across borders.

🧾 Assessment. Commentators in economic and trade publications have portrayed Paul as part of a generation of logistics leaders who combine long experience in traditional forwarding tasks with a focus on digital tools and sustainability. His tenure at Kuehne + Nagel has so far been defined by the challenge of steering the company from pandemic-era highs through a more normalised cycle while balancing shareholder pressure for growth, regulatory expectations on labour and the environment, and customers’ demands for resilient, technology-enabled supply chains.

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