Christian Thiele, Cargo Business Development Manger Germany at Emirates SkyCargo has left the company to take on new professional challenges elsewhere. His move came unexpectedly to most industry observers since he spent a quarter of a century with the airfreight division of the Gulf carrier, contributing substantially to its biz success.
´“After more than 25 years at Emirates SkyCargo, I decided, to accept a new challenge in another company that begins October 1, 2015,” writes Christian in his farewell announcement to clients and
colleagues.
Why the 50 year-old decided to depart EK SkyCargo is not indicated in his short statement.
When asked by CargoForwarder Global for his reasons he remained rather reluctant, emphasizing that the decision did not come easy because he not only earned a lot from his former employer but has
played an active role in its commercial success.
What was it then that motivated him to quit his job?
Atmospheric changes
It’s speculative but people who have been doing biz with EK SkyCargo for a long time indicated a change in climate within the airline’s airfreight division since the departure of (former)
helmsman Ram Menen who left the headquarters in Dubai in the middle of 2013. “While Ram preferred to communicate very openly, his successor Nabil Sultan seems to prefer to follow a
tight-lip policy both internally and in his relations with customers.” “Have you ever heard a single key statement concerning our industry since he took the helm at SkyCargo?” asked the
manager.
So a creeping deterioration of the atmosphere within the cargo division might be one reason why Christian decided to pack his bags.
Not the right candidate?
Another possible motive for leaving could be that he wasn’t offered a promo after Reinhard Coldewe’s retreat in May, SkyCargo’s long-time North & Central Europe manager. Instead,
CargoForwarder Global was informed by sources close to the case that Emirates is searching for other candidates to succeed Reinhard.
Asked about his immediate future in a telephone conversation, Christian refused to reveal the name of his new employer. “You will have to wait until the company announces it sometime next week,”
is all he said. However, he confirmed he will be working for an airline in the future and that he will stay in Frankfurt.
Heiner Siegmund / Michael Taweel
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