The supervisory board of Deutsche Bahn (DB) has finalized its management reshuffle with the appointments of three new board members, solidifying the changes initiated by the recent CEO transition to Evelyn Palla. The appointments, announced Thursday, are framed as crucial steps towards overhauling Germany’s national rail operator amidst persistent criticisms of service reliability and passenger dissatisfaction.
Harmen van Zijderveld will assume responsibility for regional transport from November 1st, transitioning from his previous role within DB Regio. Karin Dohm, formerly CFO of Continental and Hornbach, will head the finance department starting in December 2025. The strategically important cargo division, including DB Cargo, will be overseen by steel industry veteran Bernhard Osburg from November 15th.
Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) lauded the appointments, portraying them as completing the new leadership team under Palla. However, the Minister’s enthusiasm was tempered with a direct mandate for swift and demonstrable improvements. Schnieder emphasized the public’s expectation of “quickly felt improvements” and explicitly demanded the new board present proposals for three immediate action programs. These priorities include enhanced safety and cleanliness at railway stations, improved customer communication and increased comfort within long-distance train services.
While the appointments are presented as a fresh start, critical voices question whether the changes represent a truly fundamental shift in DB’s operational and structural challenges. The selection of Osburg to oversee DB Cargo, in particular, raises concerns given the division’s ongoing struggles with profitability and logistical bottlenecks, necessitating a robust turnaround strategy. Furthermore, the significant lag time before Dohm assumes the finance role raises questions about the immediate financial oversight available to the new CEO.
The success of the new board will hinge not only on implementing the Minister’s requested “immediate programs” but also demonstrating a long-term commitment to addressing the deep-seated systemic issues that have plagued Deutsche Bahn for years, facing pressure to deliver concrete results demonstrating a departure from the past. The speed and effectiveness of these actions will be closely monitored, both by the government and by the increasingly frustrated passenger base.
