Tom Bureau has announced that he is stepping down from Hubert Burda Media and will be leaving his roles as CEO BurdaInternational and Chair of Immediate.
With the appointment of Jan Wachtel as CEO of Burda Media, the shareholders are continuing the generational transition at the top of the company.
Together with Elisabeth Burda Furtwängler, Jacob Burda, the Board of Directors, and his fellow board members, Jan Wachtel represents the future direction of the company’s leadership.
Burda Media aims to combine the journalistic strength and credibility of its leading brands with the opportunities presented by new technologies, while also exploring new avenues for growth.
The Board of Directors of the Burda Group has appointed Jan Wachtel (45) as CEO of the Media division and as a member of the board, effective 1 January 2026. Since 2023, Jan Wachtel has served as President Publishing at Bauer Media Group, overseeing its publishing business. Additionally, publisher Yvonne Bauer appointed him to the group’s Executive Board. Previously, he held senior leadership roles at Axel Springer (Managing Director BILD Digital, COO BILD Group) and RTL Deutschland (Managing Director RTL Deutschland, Chief Digital Officer, and Chief Publishing Officer). Jan Wachtel brings extensive and long-standing experience from leading media organisations. Throughout his career, he has spearheaded and implemented successful transformation and growth initiatives across various media sectors.
“We rely on strong, credible media brands that have built trust and quality over decades, alongside an experienced leadership team. In times of profound change, we are shaping our future together by further developing our products and aligning them with the needs of customers and the business models of tomorrow. For this strategic task, Jan – with his impressive track record in leading media companies and his modern, participative leadership style – is the ideal choice.”
Elisabeth Burda Furtwängler, shareholder and member of the Board of Directors
Olaf Koch, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hubert Burda Media SE, added: “With Jan, we are gaining an excellent and experienced media executive who, together with the outstanding team, will lead the way to new growth. We are very much looking forward to working with him.”
From January 2026, as CEO, Jan Wachtel will assume full operational responsibility for Burda’s publishing businesses, which employ 5,500 people across 17 countries and generate revenues of €1.3 billion (2024).
“I’m truly excited about this new responsibility and consider it a great privilege to shape Burda’s future together with my new colleagues. This company has shaped the media landscape for decades – an impressive entrepreneurial achievement. The portfolio of brands that has emerged from this forms a strong foundation, which we will now align with the challenges of a rapidly changing media world.”
Jan Wachtel, future CEO of Burda Media
Philipp Welte will step down from his operational responsibilities as a member of the Executive Board at the beginning of 2026. He has been closely associated with the company for over 30 years, initially as Director of Communications and since 1998 as Managing Director of the publishing house. In 2009, publisher Hubert Burda appointed him to the Executive Board, where he was initially responsible for the publishing business in Germany and gradually expanded his areas of responsibility. Since the beginning of 2024, he has been responsible for the Media division in its current form on the Executive Board. In his 17 years on the Board, he has had a decisive influence on the company.
"Philipp Welte has successfully expanded our publishing business and kept it highly profitable in all disruptive developments. With his passion for journalistic products and his tireless commitment to entrepreneurially financed journalism, he has strengthened Burda and the entire publishing industry in Germany. I would like to express our sincere thanks to him for this."
Hubert Burda, publisher, on behalf of his children Jacob and Elisabeth and the entire Board of Directors
Philipp Welte will join the Group's Board of Directors in 2026.
In 2024, Hubert Burda handed over entrepreneurial and publishing responsibilities for the company to his two children, Jacob Burda and Elisabeth Burda Furtwängler. In February 2025, Olaf Koch assumed the chairmanship of the Board of Directors, while new members included Ulrike Handel and Meredith Whittaker. Andreas Rittstieg continues to serve on the board.
In June 2025, the Board of Directors implemented a strategic realignment of the company into two divisions: Media and Equity. Since 1 June 2025, Marc Al-Hames has served as CEO of Burda Equity, while Holger Eckstein acts as CFO for both divisions. Effective 1 January 2026, Jan Wachtel will complete Burda’s new board structure as CEO of Burda Media.The Media division includes Burda Verlag, Burda Forward, Burda Druck, BurdaBroadcast, Immediate in the UK, Burda Media Poland, Burda Media Extra in the Czech Republic, Burda Bleu in France, BurdaLuxury in Southeast Asia, Burda Create!, Burda International Holding, the communications agency C3 and various shareholdings such as the marketer BCN and the sales organisation MZV (each in a joint venture with Funke and Klambt).
