Patrick Naef

Professional Focus

• 20 years’ experience as a consultant/advisor and C-level executive, focused on technology within a range of sectors including airlines/aviation, travel & transportation, infrastructure, telecoms, consumer goods
• Specialized expertise in digitization, digital business models, IT strategy, organizational development and technology-driven innovation
• Extensive experience as a non-executive director and advisory board member on the boards of start-ups and multinationals in various industries
• Fluent in German, French and English, with working knowledge of Spanish

Business Expertise

• CEO and Founder of ITvisor GmbH, a boutique consulting firm specialising in digital transformation
• Group Chief Information Officer and Divisional SVP, Member of Executive Management Board of Emirates Airline Group, Dubai, U.A.E.
• CEO of Mercator, an Emirates Group subsidiary, provider of IT products and services to the travel & transportation industry, Dubai, U.A.E.
• Director and Head of Global Infrastructure Projects at Zurich Financial Services (ZFS), Zurich, Switzerland
• Group Chief Information Officer of SIG Holding AG (now SIG Combibloc Group), Neuhausen, Switzerland
• Head of ISP Projects at Zurich Insurance
• CEO and Board Chairman of SIG IT GmbH, part of SIG Group, Linnich, Germany
• Chief Information Officer and Executive Vice President of Swissair and Swissair-Sabena Airline Management Partnership (AMP); Head of the Swissair Group CIO Board
• Chief Technology Officer and founding member of Swissair online portal Beyoo.com, Zurich, Switzerland

Practice Membership

Global Industry Practices

• Industrial
• Technology

Additional Expertise

• IT Services
• Aviation & Travel
• Infrastructure & Transportation
• Telecommunications
• Financial Services
• Consumer Products

Education & Certifications

• Executive MBA from University of St. Gallen (HSG), St. Gallen, Switzerland
• Master’s degree in Computer Science from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland
• Executive Program, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, California, U.S.
• Board Effectiveness Programme, Global Board Center, IMD Business School, Lausanne, Switzerland

Affiliations

Current

• Non-Executive Director and Technology Committee Chairman, Board of Franke Holding AG
• Member, Sapphire Ventures CXO Advisory Network, Palo Alto, California, U.S.
• Member, Advisory Board of FlyNava Technologies, Bangalore, India

• Member, CIO Advisory Board, Mayfield Ventures, Menlo Park, California, U.S.
• Member, Sierra Ventures CXO Advisory Board, San Mateo, California, U.S.

Past

• Non-Executive Director, Board of SITA, Geneva, Switzerland
• Member, BT Group (British Telecom) Global Advisory Board, London, U.K.
• Member, Capgemini International Executive Council, Paris, France
• Non-Executive Director, board of mercator FZE, Dubai, UAE
• Non-Executive Chairman, board of mercator Asia, Bangkok, Thailand

Awards

• Business Transformation 150, Constellation Research (2017)
• Top 50 CIO Award, Computer News Middle East (2013)
• CIO of the Decade, IDG, Computerwoche.de and German CIO Magazine (2011)
• Aviation IT Manager of the Year, Aviation Business ME (2009)
• Top 10 CIO Middle East Award, Computer News Middle East (2009)
• CIO of the Year Runner-Up, IDG, Computerwoche.de and German CIO Magazine (2009)