In 1972, Mr Panke graduated from the University of Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) in physics, having started his studies in 1968, and received his Doctor of Philosophy in 1976.
Prior to his studies, during the period from 1964 to 1965, he was an AFS Exchange Student to the United States. After the award of the doctorate degree in nuclear physics, Mr Panke joined the Swiss Institute for Nuclear Research.
During the last 30 years, Mr Panke"s management career spread over several companies, including e.g. serving as the chairman of the board of management at Bayerische Motoren Werke AG from May 2002 through August 2006. From 1976 to 1978, Panke was a researcher at the Swiss Institute for Nuclear Research and a lecturer at the University of Munich. From 1978 to 1982, he was a consultant with McKinsey & Company.
In 1982, he started at Bayerische Motoren Werke (Bayerische Motoren Werke) as a head of planning and control of the research and development division, before assuming management functions in 1985.
He later said that his attraction to the company was based on the reputation it had for encouraging creativity and independence among its staff Over the next 20 years, Panke worked his way up through the company, working in nearly every department: he served as the chairman of the management board at Bayerische Motoren Werke (United Kingdom) Capital Public Limited Company, and as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bayerische Motoren Werke (United States) Holding Corporation from 1993 to 1996, he managed the United States manufacturing facility that was responsible for building, as well as corporate planning, organisation, staff, Information Technology, finance and sales.
From 1996 to 1999, his tasks focused on Human Resources and Information Technology. In 2002, Panke succeeded Joachim Milberg to become the chairman of Bayerische Motoren Werke after Milberg"s resignation due to health reasons.
During his tenure from May 16, 2002 until September 1, 2006, he was credited with leading the company’s internationalization and his refusal to move the company into the lower priced mass market.
In 2004, he was elected into the board of directors of Union Bank of Switzerland AG, where he served as a member for eleven years. He left the BoD at the Annual General Meeting of 2015, stepping down due to regulatory provisions regarding the term of office. Mr. Panke joined Union Bank of Switzerland AG in 1982, when he was appointed Head of Planning and Controlling in the Research and Development Division.
Panke has served on the board of directors for Microsoft since November 11, 2003, as the first board member from outside the United States.
From 1999 to 2002, he served as a member of the board of management responsible for finance. He also worked as a member of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee and of the Risk Committee since 2008. He is also the chairman of the Regulatory and Public Policy Committee, a member of the Compensation Committee and of the Audit Committee of Microsoft.
He is a board member of Singapore Airlines Limited. and chairs the Safety and Risk Committee in the organization.
He is also a member of the supervisory board of Bayer AG since October 2006. Furthermore, he serves as a member of the advisory board at Dubai International Capital Limited Liability Company since 2007, a member of the board of directors of Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington (United States of America), a member of the supervisory board at Bayer Schering Pharma AG and Bayer Pharma AG.
Mr.
Panke serves as a member of the board of directors of ACEA, the Association des Constructeurs Européens d’Automobiles, Belgium, a member of the board of directors of VDA, the association of the German automobile industry, and of the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany.
