Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG), the green coffee service group headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, is in the process of a strategic realignment designed to secure resilience, market leadership, and sustainable growth in an increasingly complex industry and commercial environment. With a clear focus on regional empowerment and a streamlined organizational structure, NKG is prioritizing adaptability and regional competence.

As the coffee industry faces new and growing challenges and global market dynamics evolve rapidly, NKG is taking decisive steps to enhance flexibility, empower leadership, and streamline operations across its global network. The company’s transformation focuses on decentralizing decision-making and creating strong regional leadership.

“This journey is about more than just adapting; it is about securing NKG’s position as a global leader for years to come,” said David M. Neumann, Group CEO and shareholder of Neumann Kaffee Gruppe. “By enacting real regional empowerment and rethinking how we work, we are building a stronger, more dynamic organization poised to navigate future challenges and opportunities. We are moving closer to our business; we are opening for talent where talent is and are moving away from our traditional setup with a very dominant center. We are building our organization for the future on the success of the past and basing it on trust and the shared values within NKG.”

Empowering Regional Leadership

As of February 2025 onwards, NKG will establish three regional offices to support operations across the Americas, Asia Pacific, and EMEA. Led by Regional CEOs, these offices will serve as hubs for decision-making and strategic development tailored to their markets.

• Americas: Based in the U.S., Nicolas Rueda Latiff will oversee this region, leveraging his successful tenure as CEO of the NKG companies in North America as well as his ample experience in Latin America.
• Asia Pacific: Ruben Scholz, who is transitioning from his position as Group COO at NG at the end of January, will lead the operations from Singapore. He brings to the table decades of experience in coffee and with NKG and an important previous sojourn in Singapore.
• Europe, Middle East & Africa: For now, these central regions will remain anchored in Hamburg under the responsibility of David M. Neumann, Group CEO.

By decentralizing operations and integrating regional insights, NKG aims to enhance decision-making speed, foster collaboration, and unlock new growth opportunities.

Streamlining Leadership at Headquarters

Changes are also underway at NKG’s Hamburg headquarters to improve agility and efficiency and bring back to the forefront the key advantages NKG has in comparison to its direct competitive peers. At the end of 2024, the Board of Management consisted of four Directors (Geschäftsführer) and four members of a Board (Geschäftsleitung), a total of 8 persons.

As of January/February 2025, it will be reduced and regrouped into the Board of Directors (BoD/ Geschäftsführung) and will consist of: 

• David M. Neumann, Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
• Maren Uzarek, Group Chief People Officer (CPO)
• Justin Schulze-Smidt, Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

The former members of the Executive Board will continue with NG as the leadership in their respective fields of expertise. Chief Business Development Officer Jörn Severloh has left the Board of Management and the company at the end of 2024.

The work of the BoD will be enhanced by being joined by the Regional CEOs in the newly created NKG Executive Board. The Executive Board will discuss and deliberate all topics defined by the participants, strategic and practical, business and other. Here, the Regional CEOs will have their forum to which they bring their significant coffee and business acumen and are an active part of all discussions and deliberations, enabling and supporting the BoD’s decisions.

The revised structure simplifies leadership and strengthens the focus on strategic priorities, operational excellence, and employee-centric values.

NKG – Board of Directors: Maren Uzarek (Director Human Resources), Justin Schulze-Smidt (Group CFO), David M. Neumann (Group CEO)