Kaeser previously held various business administration management positions, including a term at the Siemens Components Operations in
Malacca,
Malaysia (1987–1988). In 1990 he was appointed vice president of business administration of the Opto Semiconductors Division. In 1994 Kaeser served first as executive vice president and
chief financial officer, and later as
CEO of the group's American subsidiary Siemens Components, located in
Cupertino,
California, as well as at Siemens Microelectronics, in neighboring
San Jose.[2]
In 1999 Kaeser joined Corporate Finance where he was responsible for developing a company-wide performance controlling system. During this time he also shared oversight for preparing the company's stock market listing in New York and the worldwide conversion of its accounting system to
US GAAP.[citation needed]
From April 2001 to September 2004, Kaeser was a member of the group executive committee of IC Mobile and served as its chief financial officer, where he was especially active in managing and restructuring its finance exposure from customer loans and working capital management.[2]
In his former function as chief strategy officer, Kaeser supported CEO Dr.
Klaus Kleinfeld in the design and execution of the Fit4More transformation program, as well as the long-term orientation of the company's strategies on global megatrends.[2]
CEO of Siemens, 2013–2021
In July 2013 it was announced that Kaeser would replace
Peter Löscher as the CEO of the Siemens AG.[3]
During the
Hannover Messe in April 2016, Kaeser was among the 15 German CEOs who were invited to a private dinner with
PresidentBarack Obama.[10] He was also part of Merkel's delegation on the occasion of her first visit to President
Donald Trump in March 2017.[11] At the
2018 World Economic Forum in
Davos, he attended a dinner of President Trump with a group of European CEOs.[12]
In January 2020 Kaeser along with the Siemens board of directors invited an environmental activist a role on its board as it made a decision with mining giant Adani.[13]
Russian visit during the 2014 Crimean crisis
Kaeser traveled to
Russia to meet with Russian President
Vladimir Putin in April 2014 to re-affirm Siemens' commitment to Russian profits despite widespread international condemnation of Russian military intervention. The move was widely criticized in the Western World, including by German Chancellor
Angela Merkel.[14]
However Kaeser wasn't the only one who had a more pro-Russian mood at that time; many other prominent Germans like former chancellors
Helmut Schmidt and
Gehard Schroeder voiced their concern for more understanding of Russia's views, including some in Merkel's own party, like
Peter Gauweiler or
Armin Laschet, who all faced criticism in the German Press.[15]
Later,
former US AdviserZbigniew Brzezinski revealed that the former
World Bank Chief
Robert Zoellick aggressively pressured Kaeser due to his Russian visit. Zoellick reminded Kaeser that his company has more business in the United States than in Russia, and it would have negative consequences if he kept following the Russian path.[16]