OUR TEAM WORKS FOR YOU

We are at home in the digital and technological world

NELEX consultants know digital and technological change from many angles. This is why our agile, team oriented way of working enables us to find the right person for even highly specialised positions in a timely manner, always with your industry specific needs in mind. Let us talk about it.

Industrieroboterarm in einer Fabrikumgebung, der an einem Werkstück arbeitet.

Digitality

For us, digitality does not mean neglecting personal contact. Quite the opposite. In executive search, we digitalise the processes and workflows that can meaningfully be digitalised, creating space for what truly matters in our business: the personal conversation.

Internationality

The world is growing together faster and faster. Distance is no longer an obstacle. Most of our clients are international companies with a strong presence in the DACH region and other Western European countries, or with their headquarters or a major office in Germany.

Zwei Personen stehen vor einem großen Fenster mit Stadtblick und unterhalten sich.

Mann in Businesskleidung fährt Fahrrad vor einem modernen Glasgebäude.

Agility

For us, agility is the highest form of adaptability a company can achieve. It means we anticipate as early as possible rather than simply reacting to circumstances. We are committed to continuous learning, we are innovative ourselves, and we share our knowledge to your benefit. Agility is therefore an essential factor in maintaining competitiveness. Yours and ours.

The NELEX Team

NELEX was founded by three experienced executive search consultants who developed their expertise across various consulting firms.

Karsten Berge, CEO and Chairman of the Board

Karsten Berge holds a degree in Business Administration with a focus on Strategic Planning and Marketing as well as Business Information Systems, studied at the University of Cologne, in London and in St. Etienne.
With around 30 years of professional experience in the IT and telecommunications industry, Berge has excellent contacts at the senior leadership level of major software and IT companies, consulting firms and a wide range of large and medium sized enterprises across various industries.
He began his career as a consultant at IT consulting firm Ploenzke, followed by a role as Account Manager at General Electric IS, before spending many years as Key Account Manager and Sales Director for large enterprise clients at o.tel.o. He then established the German subsidiary of US start-up StorageNetworks, one of the first players in the SaaS space. Prior to founding SearchConsult in 2006, Berge served as Managing Director of VIA net.works GmbH.
In 2006, Karsten Berge founded the executive search firm SearchConsult GmbH with a clear focus on the IT and digitalisation sector. That focus and a dedicated identification and research capability enabled SearchConsult to grow rapidly to 50 employees, becoming one of the largest search firms of its kind. In 2015, Karsten Berge sold his majority stake to the publicly listed Allgeier Group.
With NELEX AG, Berge and his team have been recognised multiple times by WirtschaftsWoche with five stars as best executive search firm in the categories Digitalisation, IT and Consulting/Professional Services. NELEX has also been ranked on multiple occasions as a Top HR Service Provider in the Executive Search category by FOCUS magazine.

Dr. Wolfgang Rothe, Associate Partner

Dr. Wolfgang Rothe brings several years of experience across the telecommunications, manufacturing and utilities sectors, including positions at Mannesmann, Vodafone, AtosOrigin and Ista. His most recent role in industry was as CIO, where he built deep specialist knowledge and developed a strong network of international industry decision makers.
Since 2008, Dr. Wolfgang Rothe has worked in executive search for specialists and senior leaders, filling key positions within IT, technology and digitalisation environments.
Wolfgang Rothe studied physics in Bonn and completed his doctorate (Dr. rer. nat.) at RWTH Aachen University. During his doctoral studies, he worked as a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Iron Research in Düsseldorf.
His clients include mid-market companies, ICT service providers and consulting firms.

Christian Hecker, Director

Christian Hecker has more than 15 years of experience across executive search, digitalisation, technology and consulting. After studying Business Administration with a focus on HR and Marketing at Hochschule Fresenius, he began his career in HR management and recruiting for specialists and senior leaders in IT, Finance and Sales.
In the years that followed, he continuously deepened his expertise in executive search and took on increasingly senior roles at renowned consulting firms. At SearchConsult, dfind.com, Pawlik Recruiters and most recently as Partner at Ward Howell International, he led numerous search mandates in the digital space and supported well known companies from industry, retail and management consulting in filling strategic key positions.
As Director at NELEX AG, his focus is on executive search for companies undergoing digital transformation. With deep market knowledge, a strong understanding of technology driven business models and an extensive network, Christian Hecker is the ideal contact for filling leadership roles in IT and Digital Strategy.

Jonas Knippel, Senior Consultant

Jonas Knippel completed a commercial apprenticeship in wholesale and foreign trade in Bremen with a focus on Business Development, followed by a year in Hong Kong as Assistant to the Management of a subsidiary company.
Back in Germany, he went on to complete a Bachelor's degree in International Business at CBS International Business School in Cologne and a Master's degree in Business Management at TH Cologne, both with distinction.
Jonas Knippel has been part of the NELEX team for over three years. Having grown from working student to Consultant, he today fills C-level positions as well as sales and leadership roles within IT systems houses and software environments.

Anna Paffendorf, Executive Assistant | Operations and HR

Following the successful completion of her commercial apprenticeship in wholesale and foreign trade management, Anna Paffendorf began a dual Bachelor's degree programme in General Management at Cologne Business School (CBS) in 2023, with NELEX as her industry partner.
Through her work in executive search, she gained valuable insight into the placement of specialist and leadership positions and developed a thorough understanding of the requirements across the IT, retail and e-commerce sectors.
Since 2026, she has been supporting the NELEX AG management team as Executive Assistant Operations and HR, handling organisational and administrative matters. In this role, she coordinates a wide range of day to day tasks and serves as a point of contact for the team as well as for internal and external stakeholders. Her responsibilities also extend to administration, human resources and office management.