Managing director Jan Kasten says goodbye to ppi Media

On Feb. 28, ppi Media's current managing director and CTO, Jan Kasten, will leave the company to take a break from his career. The two shareholders, Dr. Hauke Berndt and Manuel Scheyda, will remain as managing directors.

Kasten has been working for ppi Media since 2002 and was responsible for research and development, product management and customer service as managing director. In recent years, he was involved in repositioning ppi Media as a technologically leading service company for the digital publishing industry and initiated the transformation toward an agile organizational structure.

The two managing partners, Berndt and Scheyda, reacted with regret to Kasten's decision to leave the company. "How can I put this without making it sound like an empty phrase? Jan has contributed significantly to turning our new developments into a success. He was an excellent helmsman and friend who is now leaving the ship. I wish him plain sailing for the future and am looking forward to hearing from him again in the future," says Berndt.

Kasten said: "I did a lot of thinking before coming to the decision to take some time out and withdraw from traditional day-to-day work. It goes without saying that this has not been an easy decision for me as I feel very close to the company, its staff and our customers. But ppi is very well positioned for the future with Hauke and Manuel as managing directors."

Berndt and Scheyda took over the company as part of a management buy-out and became joint shareholders with the Kiel-based investor Alexander Eck.

The departure of Kasten comes at a time when ppi's organizational structure continues to be adjusted to market requirements. The two shareholders (Berndt and Scheyda) take over as the company's managing directors. While Scheyda will be responsible for the areas of development, product management, support and projects, Berndt will lead the accounts, sales, marketing and administration departments in his role as CEO. Together, the two will be responsible for the business transformation department, which is tasked with continuously developing the company further.