A long-term member of the IEP Advisory Board, Uwe Berner served as executive vice president of human resources and service companies for ZF Friedrichshafen AG from 1989 until his retirement in 2009. After completing his degree in business
administration (Dipl.-Kaufmann) in 1971, Mr. Berner went to work for Standard Elektrik Lorenz AG in Stuttgart as a trainee. Soon after he was promoted to personnel officer in the education sector, and in 1974 he became head of the Corporate Department for Specialist and Management Training. In 1977 Mr. Berner moved into the international arena, serving as head of personnel and social affairs for SEL Telecommunication in its Headquarters and Export Sector. Later he entered the automobile sector, becoming executive vice president and labor relations director for FIAT, Iveco-Magirus AG, where he is still an executive board member. After four years with FIAT, Mr. Berner joined the management team at ZF Friedrichshafen AG and since 2013 has been a member of its International Confederation Board. Additionally, Mr. Berner is a member of the executive committee of Südwestmetall, chairman of the board of the Bildungswerk der Baden-Württembergischen Wirtschaft e. V. and board member of the BKK Landesverband Süd in Baden-Württemberg.

Since he retired in 2009 he has taken on emeriti status on the IEP Advisory Board. Thanks to Mr. Uwe Berner’s involvement, ZF and the IEP enjoy a very productive relationship. IEP Students intern at numerous ZF locations and many IEP graduates have gone to work for ZF in Germany and the U.S. ZF has hosted the IEP Advisory Board meeting several times.