Most recently, Mr. Knott advised a lossmaking €4bn division of a global Tier 1 Automotive supplier in a two-year turnaround program. The challenge for this division was two-fold: to cope with a long-term legacy of structurally unprofitable business and in addition to countermeasure short-term market driven inflation for raw material, labour, energy and logistics. The program included top line measures such as product portfolio, OEM pricing re-negotiation, and the full spectrum of bottom-line measures such as footprint rationalization, SG&A headcount reduction, material cost optimization, and plant productivity. Besides, the program targeted significant working capital release through inventory reduction.

Previously, Mr. Knott served one year as Chief Turnaround Officer with the loss-making German subsidiary of a private equity owned industrial machinery group. He led the company to break even by driving a holistic profit improvement program including measures for price increase, plant productivity and procurement savings. He also led negotiations with the works council to reduce the work force via a voluntary leaver program.

During a three-year program Mr. Knott transformed the loss-making European business of a multi-billion-dollar global player in information technology services by designing and implementing a new operating model across 18 countries. The program included closure of operations in declining markets, rightsizing of operations in remaining markets and the creation of shared services hubs in low-cost locations.

Prior to joining A&M, Mr. Knott spent six years as Head of the Munich office of a German consulting boutique and Chief Restructuring Officer or Chief Financial Officer in various restructuring projects on behalf of intensive care units of major German banks. Before that, he served as President of a medical devices business unit with Danaher, CFO with iTAC Software AG and worked with Bain & Company.

Mr. Knott earned an MBA from WHU Koblenz and studied at École Supérieure de Commerce de Reims and Brandeis Graduate School of International Economics and Finance. A German national, Mr. Knott is fluent in German and English.