Cologne/Stuttgart, Germany, März 7, 2025. More than 500 guests from the real estate industry came together yesterday evening in Cologne’s Motorworld event venue to witness the final of the Immobilienmanager Awards 2025 live. Steffen Szeidl, Chief Executive Officer of the consultancy firm Drees & Sommer SE, which specializes in construction and real estate, won the prestigious industry award in the Head of the Year category. In his laudatory speech, Sascha Klaus, CEO of Berlin Hyp AG, paid tribute to him as ‘simply excellent’ and praised his courage in breaking new ground and inspiring others. Steffen Szeidl sees the award as confirmation of the direction taken by Drees & Sommer: “We have driven innovation and consistently looked towards the future.”
Focus on New Markets and Megatrends
The aim of the 17th Immobilienmanager awards was to recognize hard work and top performance in the real estate industry, as noted by the editor-in-chief of the Immobilienmanager magazine, André Eberhard. Steffen Szeidl emphasized the need to think outside the box: “Of course, some markets are strained at the moment. But there’s no point in burying your head in the sand. Right now, it’s important to focus on new markets and megatrends that are already generating immense demand." Besides the trend in the real estate industry, Drees & Sommer’s CEO sees growth opportunities primarily in the field of energy and transport infrastructure and in the decarbonization of the industrial sector.
Leadership by Example
Steffen Szeidl is known for his innovative capability and his flair for combining things in the right way. Sascha Klaus said: “Under his leadership, Drees & Sommer has developed into a diversified, global and innovative company.“
Born in the German city of Heidelberg in 1980, he began his career at Drees & Sommer in 2006 after studying architecture. In 2015 he took on responsibility as the youngest Executive Board member in the company's history. He now molds the group of companies as CEO, with a clear focus on digital transformation, sustainability and international expansion. Central functions such as communication, information technology and finance are also part of his core competencies.
For Steffen Szeidl, leadership means inspiring people and achieving great things together: ”Instead of pointing the finger at others, moaning about the difficult market situation or complaining about the lack of political incentives, we are driving innovation forward and breaking new ground," he explains. “We try out new ideas and technologies ourselves first, whenever possible, so that we are on the same wavelength when advising our partners and clients. This shows us what works and where the limits of what is feasible actually are.”
In his private life, Szeidl also has a down-to-earth approach and an affinity to nature. As a husband and father of two sons, he prefers to spend his leisure time with his family in the great outdoors. He is particularly fond of the mountains.
Employees as Drivers of Success
Aiming high is also reflected in his attitude to his work. The business success of Drees & Sommer is mainly due to its 6,000+ employees, Steffen Szeidl emphasized. He dedicated the award to them: “Our employees face up to all new challenges with great motivation, commitment and energy every day. They understand the multitude of new challenges as opportunities. I would like to express my gratitude to them.” It is still important for Drees & Sommer to attract and retain the best talent, enabling the company to continue to participate in shaping the future of the construction and real estate industry, he added.