Olaf Boettger

Vice President of DBS, Cytiva

Creativity needs constraints if you ask Olaf Boettger. As head of the Danaher Business System (DBS) Office for Cytiva, he is deeply involved in making the business successful by encouraging both ideas and structure, because without one, the other will fail. On top of that, he believes that everything starts and ends with customers’ needs. This guides his leadership both personally and professionally.

Olaf spent four years leading innovation strategy in Danaher’s DBS Office, where he helped triple Danaher’s core growth from innovation 2017 to 2020.

Before his time in Danaher Corporate, Olaf held leadership roles in two Danaher Operating Companies, Leica Microsystems and HACH. For Leica, Olaf led the Marketing and Growth function and spearheaded a move from technology-driven product innovation to market- and customer-driven innovative solutions. From 2008 to 2015, he held several roles at HACH in Danaher’s Water Quality Group. Olaf started as a product information manager and ultimately led the Global Laboratory Solutions Business Unit.

In his current role, he looks forward to building the business and building the people in the organization. He considers it an honor to coach the people he works with. For Olaf, a favorite day at work is when he brings people and issues together, enables collaboration, and trusts that things will work in a good way without his direct involvement.

To build on that coaching role, Olaf has been known to mentor students from the University of Duisburg-Essen and the Thomas Morus Akademie in his past.

Olaf earned his PhD in Management from the Centre for Social Theory and Technology, Keele University (Great Britain). His thesis was on the use of information technologies in organizations.

His earned his MA with distinction from Lancaster University Management School (Great Britain), on the topic of Organizational Analysis and Behavior.