Regina Flemming CEO of Axel Springer Russia. Country: Germany

Biography of Regina Flemming

Regina Flemming is the CEO of Axel Springer Russia, the Russian branch of the German company Axel Springer AG. She has been working with Russian companies since 1996. From 2003 to 2005, she headed the Russian-German consulting company "Flemming and Partners". Prior to that, she worked at the American-Russian investment fund Delta Capital and led the Russian offices of German companies Ehrmann AG and Krone AG.

Regina von Flemming graduated from the Free University of Berlin and the Institute of Political Studies Science Po Paris in France. She also attended the INSEAD business school in Fontainebleau. According to several media sources, Flemming worked as a journalist for the German publication Spiegel and television channels Spiegel TV, RTL, and Sat1 from 1989 to 1990. However, in 2006, Flemming stated that she worked as a journalist for the Russian branch of Spiegel magazine and Spiegel TV in recent years. It has been reported in the press that Flemming has over a decade of experience working in Russia, including as the head of her own consulting firm with offices in Moscow and Berlin. The magazine "Advertising Industry" specifically mentioned that from 2003 to 2005, Flemming led the Russian-German consulting firm "Flemming and Partners".

In 1996-1999, Flemming headed the Russian offices of German companies Ehrmann AG and Krone AG. In 1997, she became the head of the Committee for Entrepreneurial Practices of the Union of German Economy in Moscow (according to other sources, the organization she led was called the "Committee for Entrepreneurial Practices of the Union of German Economy in Russia"). In 2000, she became a member of the board of the Union. From 2000 to 2003, Flemming held a position as Vice President of the American-Russian investment fund Delta Capital in Moscow.

On December 15, 2005, Flemming took over as CEO of Axel Springer Russia, replacing the previous head, Irina Silaeva. According to Leonid Bershidsky, the head of projects at Independent Media and former publisher of the Russian versions of Newsweek and Forbes magazines owned by Axel Springer Russia, the replacement of Silaeva with Flemming could not be considered equivalent. While Silaeva was among the top three specialists in Moscow in her field, according to Bershidsky, Flemming was "definitely not a media person". In early 2006, Flemming mentioned in an interview that she made changes to the structure of the publishing house after her arrival, aligning it with a "Western model". These changes were associated with the launch of a new product, likely referring to the computer magazine ComputerBild, which was presented in March 2006.

On December 1, 2006, Flemming issued an order to confiscate the already prepared December issue of Russian Forbes and replace the main material, which was about the richest woman in Russia, the wife of the Mayor of Moscow, Yelena Baturina, with a translated text. The unbound issue of Forbes, according to a source from Vedomosti newspaper, was destroyed. The official website of Axel Springer Russia stated that the suspension of production of the December issue was due to the fact that "the principles of journalistic ethics were not observed in the case of the main story of the magazine". The publisher claimed that an distorted quote from Baturina's interview was featured on the cover, which could mislead readers. However, according to the magazine's staff, the conflict was caused by the article itself. According to Maxim Kashulinsky, the editor-in-chief of the Russian version of Forbes, who learned about the content of the lawsuit, the amount of the claims was not specified, but the court was asked to seize the entire circulation of the magazine and prohibit the publication of the article about Baturina on the Internet.

Meanwhile, the American magazine Forbes, the owner of the license under which Axel Springer Russia publishes the Russian version of the magazine in Russia, supported the journalists and demanded that the December issue be released as originally planned. Flemming complied, and on December 4, the magazine with the article about Baturina was distributed to retail networks. Sales were good, despite the fact that the price of the issue increased by 20 percent due to the costs associated with the scandal. Editor-in-chief Kashulinsky remained in his position. In a joint statement, the publishers and editors expressed regret over the incident. Russian media speculated that Flemming might lose her position due to the scandal (Bershidsky, in particular, questioned the validity of such a decision). Flemming herself flew to Berlin for a meeting on December 3.