Sadiq Gillani

Sadiq Gillani is Strategy Chief of Lufthansa, the largest airline in Europe

Biography

Sadiq Gillani is Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of Lufthansa, responsible for developing the Group's strategic direction. He was previously a partner with Seabury Group, an aviation consultancy and was based in New York and Sydney. He served as the Chief Commercial Officer of WebJet Linhas Aéreas, a startup Brazilian low cost carrier, based in Rio de Janeiro. He also supported with the launch of two US startup carriers, namely Eos and Skybus, which ceased operations in 2008. He started his career at Bain & Company, the strategy consultancy, in London and Johannesburg. He completed his MBA at Harvard Business School and holds a BA and MPhil in Management Studies from Cambridge University.

Media Coverage

In April 2010, he was quoted in The Guardian newspaper, saying that the merger of United and Continental would lead to reduced capacity and address over-supply in the US airline industry.

In May 2012, Swiss business magazine Bilanz described him as a Fremdkörper ("foreign body") to Lufthansa employers

In December 2012, German business magazine Wirtschaftswoche commented that he was part of a small group of trusted advisors to the CEO of Lufthansa.

In May 2013, German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote that: "For many leadership positions in the Group under the Board, CEO Franz has in the past two years brought in many specialists from outside, on whose loyalty he can count on. This includes the new Chief Strategist Sadiq Gillani, a Briton, in the rather cumbersome and, above all, highly German business, swirling around with ideas that the traditionalists must consider as an affront. Gillani was a management consultant prior."

In July 2013, he accepted the Airline Business Airline Strategy Award at London's Lincoln Inn Fields

In April 2014, German Newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote:"Leute, die Spohr gut kennen, glauben, dass er selbst anfangs keine großen personellen Veränderungen beschließen wird - mit einer Ausnahme: Kaum jemand geht davon aus, dass Strategiechef Sadiq Gillani bleiben wird. Franz hatte Gillani einst geholt, um den Laden aufzurütteln - und Gillani hat das intensiver getan, als den meisten lieb war, Spohr inklusive."

"People that know Spohr well believe that there will be no major personnel changes, with one exception: hardly anyone expects that Strategy Chief Sadiq Gillani will stay. Franz had appointed Gillani in order to shake things up - and Gillani had done this intensively, more than most people liked, Spohr included."

In July 2014, German Newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote: "Die Frage, wen Spohr künftig in Top-Positionen um sich schart, wird intern genauestens beobachtet - und der neue Chef weiß das. Deswegen macht er eines gerade nicht: Dinge, die alle von ihm erwarten. Der von ihm nicht gerade geliebte Strategiechef Sadiq Gillani darf weiterhin Konzepte entwickeln. Personalvorstand Bettina Volkens übernahm dieses Ressort auch für die Flugsparte in Personalunion und muss nun erst recht liefern, statt jetzt schon verabschiedet zu werden. Andererseits: Viele Spohr-Vertraute warten noch auf den nächsten Karriereschritt."

"The question of whom Spohr will gather around him in top positions in future is closely monitored internally - and the new CEO knows this. That's why there is one thing he does not do: the thing that everyone expects from him. His Chief Strategy Officer Sadiq Gillani may continue to develop new concepts. HR Director Bettina Volkens took over responsibility for Passage HR and must now deliver even more, instead of being already dismissed. On the other hand, many of Spohr's buddies are still waiting for their next career step."

In September 2014, he spoke at the TED (Conference) Berlin, delivering the first ever TED Talk on the airline industry.