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2nd December 2008

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Portrait of Ostrowski

03.06.08

Hartmut Ostrowski, the chief executive of Bertelsmann, is the subject of an in-depth portrait in the New York Times.

The newspaper writes that Ostrowski is planning  a cultural makeover at the company: "When Hartmut Ostrowski was an up-and-comer in Bertelsmann’s printing and services division in the 1990s, his bosses were discouraged from speaking at meetings of the top executives. In the glamorous world of Bertelsmann, a global media empire with music, television, and publishing properties — Germany’s answer to Time Warner — services were viewed as strictly a backstage function."

"Now, with Mr. Ostrowski at the helm of Bertelsmann, the stagehands are striding into the spotlight," adds the NYT, comparing the appointment of Markus Dohle as the new chief executive of Random House to "putting the head mechanic in charge of an entire airline".

New York Times

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