Prof. Wolfgang Holzgreve named „Manager of the Year 2023“

Prestigious award presented by the Healthcare Industry Club and the Thieme Publishing Group in Berlin

Bonn, February 16, 2024 – Yesterday evening, Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. mult. Wolfgang Holzgreve, MBA, Medical Director and Chairman and CEO of the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), was honored with the prestigious „Manager of the Year“ award from the Club der Gesundheitswirtschaft (cdgw, the Association of Health Care Providers and Industr Leaders ) and the Thieme Publishing Group for his outstanding achievements as manager of the UKB. Prof. Holzgreve was a pioneer in prenatal diagnostics during his time as a gynaecologist and researcher. Among other things, he was a leader in Germany in the introduction of chorionic villus sampling and then non-invasive prenatal diagnostics, for which he also acquired patents. After 14 years as a full professor and head of department at the University Hospital Basel, he is now in his 12th year as Medical Director and CEO of the University Hospital Bonn, which has been ranked number 1 in NRW in the science and FOCUS rankings for several years. The University Hospital Bonn has the third highest average case severity rate (case-mix index) in Germany and has been recognized as the number one education champion of all hospitals in Germany by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. Prof. Holzgreve was also very active internationally, e.g. on the Board of the European Board and College and the International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecology, as well as Chair of the World Health Executive Forum. The laudatory speech for Prof. Wolfgang Holzgreve was held by Prof. Frank Ulrich Montgomery, former President of the German Medical Association and Chair of Council of the World Medical Association until 2023.

Every year since 2004, the Thieme Management Award has honored personalities from the German healthcare providers and industry who have distinguished themselves as the top managers in the last 12 to 18 months. For Thieme and the cdgw, the special work as Manager of the Year is characterized by sustainable and innovative action and pioneering projects that are exemplary for the field and have been successfully developed or implemented by the „Manager of the Year“. Unique projects for the respective institution have been achieved and therefore the award-winning manager serves as a role model for other managers. Last year’s winner, Prof. Heyo Kroemer, CEO of the Berlin Charité, has now been followed by Prof. Wolfgang Holzgreve as „Manager of the Year“.

In an accompanying article, Thieme pays tribute to Prof. Holzgreve as a „researcher of international standing, pioneer of prenatal diagnostics and hospital manager who does not always follow the mainstream“. Together with an international research consortium, the specialist in gynecology and obstetrics introduced an innovative examination method in Germany, the so-called chorionic villus sampling, which enables early detection of chromosomal abnormalities and hereditary diseases in the unborn child and has significantly improved the options for pregnant women. Prof. Holzgreve has more than 600 publications in scientific journals, is the author or editor of more than 10 books and has given over 1,000 lectures at scientific congresses. He has a syndrome named after him and was awarded 7 honorary doctor degrees.

As Medical Director and CEO of the UKB and a manager who completed his Master of Business Administration in 2007, he also has the courage to speak openly about unpleasant things. One of his mottos is  „talk less, do more“, and accordingl he not only ensures that the UKB is one of the few large university hospitals to be regularly with positive balance sheets and profit which can then be invested again, but also keeps a constant eye on the further development of university medicine. Not only has the number of patients and employees at the UKB grown continuously, but numerous new, innovative buildings on the Venusberg campus and projects at the cutting edge of digitalization and medical research to optimize patient care, teaching and research have been completed or started.

He is particularly interested in structuring university medicine with specialized units in department centers that are designed for institutionalized cooperation.

During the recent corona-pandemia period, the UKB treated over 3,000 in-patients with SARS-CoV-2, but in contrast to all other university hospitals, it treated even more patients in the first year of the pandemic instead of taking advantage of many free hospitalization bonuses. The position taken by Prof. Holzgreve in cooperation with the UKB department chiefs was that there were no e.g. fewer heart attacks, strokes or cancers in times of additional corona burdens and that patients should not be endangered by delayed diagnosis and treatment.

„I feel very honored that the jury has awarded me this year’s ‚Manager of the Year‘ award. It is a great pleasure for me to see how our work over the last ten plus years at UKB is bearing fruits, and I would like to thank the great teams I have the privilege of working with. I am firmly convinced that this also honors the overall performance of the UKB, and I would therefore like to express my heartfelt thanks to our employees who have contributed to this great success with their commitment,“ said Prof. Holzgreve. In addition to numerous structural adjustments in the UKB, Prof. Holzgreve, who has already worked in Switzerland for 14 years and in the USA for four, has also strongly promoted digitalization, AI and personalized medicine. Last but not least, he attaches particular importance to international cooperation. Seven years ago, he initiated the international Master’s degree course in Global Health at the UKB and has been continuously involved in international projects and charity campaigns. He is a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, has been President of many Scientific Organizations and was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit 1st Class of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Image material:

Caption: Prof. Wolfgang Holzgreve is „Manager of the Year 2023“.
(from left): Prof. Frank Ulrich Montgomery, former President of the German Medical Association and Chair of Council of the World Medical Association until 2023, gave the laudatory speech for Prof. Wolfgang Holzgreve, Medical Director and CEO of the UKB, who was named „Manager of the Year 2023“ yesterday in Berlin by the Club der Gesundheitswirtschaft (cdgw) and the Thieme Publishing Group.

Picture credits: University Hospital Bonn (UKB) / V. Röser

Press contact:
Viola Röser
Press Officer at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB)
Communications and Media Office at the University Hospital Bonn
Phone +49 228 287- 10649
E-Mail: viola.roeser@ukbonn.de

About University Hospital Bonn: The UKB treats around 500,000 patients per year, employs around 9,000 staff and has total assets of 1.6 billion euros. In addition to the 3,500 medical and dental students, 550 people are trained in numerous healthcare professions each year. The UKB is ranked first among university hospitals (UK) in NRW in the science ranking and in the Focus clinic list and has the third highest case mix index (case severity) in Germany. In 2022 and 2023, the F.A.Z. Institute recognized the UKB as the most desirable employer and training champion among public hospitals in Germany.