Table
Results at a glance
Bernd M. Schell – measurable results from his five build-up stations, with year and primary source.
| Station | Year | Metric | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deutsche Dienstrad | H1 2025 | Online relevance 0.2 → 12.1 | Podcast “Schnelles Helles” (YouTube), 2025 |
| Brose Idea Management | 2024 | EUR 25.9M first-year net benefit | Zentrum Ideenmanagement, 2024 |
| Brose Idea Management | 2024 | #1 “Best Idea Management” | Brose press release, 2024 |
| brose.com relaunch | 2023 | +248 % Google Maps visibility, +228 % profile views | Uberall Success Story, 2023 |
| brose.com relaunch | 2019/2020 | Overall winner Mittelständler study | Horizont.net, 2020 |
| brose.com relaunch | 2015 | Econ Award Nominee | Econ Verlag, 2015 |
| BHS Aviation EBACE | 2023 | 450 booth visitors, 55 leads, 26,876 impressions | EBACE Geneva 2023 (own evaluation) |
| Auto-Scholz multi-brand marketing | 2000–2012 | 12 years, top grade in work certificate | Auto-Scholz work certificate, 2012 |
| Career total | 2000–2024 | 9 of 9 work certificates with top grade | Original certificates Auto-Scholz & Brose |
Case Studies
Five stations, five proofs.
Transformation in a High-Velocity Environment – Platform, Growth & AI
Situation: Fast-growing bike leasing company. Fragmented workflows, marketing team restructuring, need for enterprise sales story and scalable structures.
Approach: Bernd M. Schell built the digital marketing and growth foundation before the team existed in its current form: an end-to-end toolchain for campaigns, funnels and partners, including digital asset management. Client-side ownership of the technical website relaunch: selected and steered the agency, owned requirements, acceptance and go-live (make-or-buy in practice). Developed the enterprise sales story, managed team restructuring, secured delivery for 5 roles. Six launches in twelve months, owned single-handedly – including the digitally owned brand launch “Du verDienstrad” and the first experiential booth at Zukunft Personal Europe 2025.
Result: Website relaunch from WordPress to Neos CMS (headless, JSON API) to go-live in four months (11/2024), publicly documented in the medienreaktor case study; followed by the multilingual bike calculator on a completely new technical basis (03/2025). Technical and local SEO from near zero to industry level: online relevance from 0.2 to 12.1 in H1/2025 (podcast “Schnelles Helles”, 2025). Built up GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) as a new field with no market standard. Supported the Eintracht Frankfurt partnership in its confidential concept phase, months before public communication. Clear structures established, responsibilities anchored, velocity secured – in close sparring with management and owners.
External reference: medienreaktor – Website Relaunch Case Study ↗
Global Transformation of Idea Management
Situation: Bernd M. Schell took over a 50+ year-old employee suggestion system, no longer fit for global requirements. 23 countries, 57 sites, fragmented processes. The system needed fundamental realignment – in content, technology, and culture.
Approach: Self-directed strategic planning, realignment and standardisation as global head with direct reporting to the Board Member for Organisation and HR – in close alignment with the owner family. Built cloud-based platform “IDEAS” and deployed worldwide – entirely in-house, without external consultants. Negotiated 10 works councils. 55 coordinators across 23 countries. Full rollout in 6 months.
Result: Under Bernd M. Schell’s lead, EUR 25.9M first-year net benefit – verified by Zentrum Ideenmanagement (2024). That equals a 488 % increase in first-year net benefit in 2022 (Brose reference letter, 10/2024). The “Best Idea Management 2024” award was juried among others by Prof. Dr. Maria Roche (Harvard Business School). 13,000+ ideas annually. 3x Gold at the German Idea Management Award (2022–2024), including #1 “Best Idea Management” (Brose press release, 2024). Individual awards: 2021 – 1st place “Occupational Safety”, 2022 – 2nd place “Best Apprentice Idea” and 2nd place “Administration & Services”, 2023 – 3rd place “Safe & Healthy Workplace”. First awards for Brose in over 10 years. Sustainable culture change.
brose.com, HR Websites & Global Online Recruiting
Situation: Outdated site, fragmented HR pages, no unified presence. High headhunter costs, no conversion logic.
Approach: Bernd M. Schell led the worldwide brose.com relaunch project (design, UX, CMS, hosting, content architecture) – aligned with the board and owner family. Global Product Owner for all HR websites and recruiting platforms worldwide. Built e-recruiting strategy with conversion logic: online personalisation via Dynamic Yield (A/B testing, segmentation, personalised content), Google for Jobs integration, and localised career pages in 7 countries. Advised leaders, HR marketers, and global sites on data-driven recruiting campaign optimisation.
Result: Bernd M. Schell delivered +248 % Google Maps visibility and +228 % profile views (source: Uberall Success Story, 2023). Horizont.net overall winner Mittelständler study (2020). Econ Award Nominee 2015. Applications significantly increased, headhunter costs reduced. brose.com established as global recruiting platform.
External reference: G&L Systemhaus – Brose/Akamai CDN Case Study ↗
Shareholder Mandate – Building and Scaling a Private Airline
Situation: Private airline in growth phase across DACH. Need for B2B and B2C marketing at executive level. Competitive premium segment positioning.
Approach: Direct shareholder mandate to Bernd M. Schell. Bilingual brand and content strategy (B2B, B2C, online). Built and scaled social media presence and online marketing including website. Orchestrated trade show execution at EBACE 2023 (Geneva Airport security zone).
Result: Bernd M. Schell built the brand and positioned BHS Aviation in the premium segment across DACH. Instagram 10,000+ followers. B2B and B2C channels in Germany and Switzerland. 8 years as the shareholder’s trusted advisor. EBACE 2023 (Geneva): 450 booth visitors, 55 leads, 25 new contacts, 26,876 multichannel impressions (source: own trade-show evaluation, 2023).
Central Multi-Brand Marketing – Reporting Directly to the Owner
Situation: Mercedes-Benz dealer (est. 1894) with multiple brands. No central marketing, fragmented activities, no brand coordination.
Approach: Bernd M. Schell built “Central Marketing” as a staff function reporting to owner/CEO. Multi-brand management (MB, Porsche, VW, Chrysler, Jeep). Corporate design enforcement. All digital: SEO, analytics, social, in-house dev. With Daimler AG: introduced workshop fixed-price offers, increasing parts and service revenue.
Result: 12 years of continuous build-up by Bernd M. Schell – with top grade in work certificate (source: original Auto-Scholz certificate, 2012). Professionalization of marketing. Systematic handling of database complexity. Demonstrably increased workshop and accessory revenues.
RECOGNITION
External Validation
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Bernd M. Schell do at Deutsche Dienstrad?
With Deutsche Dienstrad since 2024, today Lead Digital & AI Manager. Responsible for toolchain build-up, enterprise sales story, team restructuring, and brand launch “Du verDienstrad”. Secured delivery for five roles during team realignment. Website relaunch, bike calculator, SEO visibility significantly increased: Online relevance from 0.2 to 12.1 in H1/2025 (podcast “Schnelles Helles”, 2025).
What was the IDEAS platform at Brose?
IDEAS was the cloud platform for idea management at Brose Group, conceived and globally deployed by Bernd M. Schell. Global governance structure introduced across 23 countries, including fully automated global reporting. Built entirely in-house, without external consultants.
What does “first-year net benefit” mean in idea management?
First-year net benefit is the monetary benefit generated by implemented employee ideas in the first year after implementation. At Brose Group under Bernd M. Schell’s leadership, first-year net benefit was EUR 25.9M – verified by the Center for Idea Management and awarded 1st Place at the German Idea Management Award 2024.
Who awards the German Idea Management Award?
The German Idea Management Award is given by the Center for Idea Management (zi), the professional association for idea management, continuous improvement, and employee suggestion systems in Germany. Bernd M. Schell won with Brose Group 3x Gold (2022–2024) and 1st Place “Best Idea Management” 2024. Individual awards: 2021 Occupational Safety (1st), 2022 Apprentice Idea and Administration/Services (2nd each), 2023 Safe & Healthy Workplace (3rd). He was an elected board member of the Center for Idea Management.
What was the role in the brose.com relaunch?
Project lead for the worldwide relaunch: design, UX, CMS, hosting, content architecture, corporate identity. Online personalisation via Dynamic Yield (A/B testing, segmentation). Localised career pages in 7 countries and Google for Jobs integration. Bernd M. Schell’s employment reference confirms that he sustainably increased Brose Group’s online presence and significantly raised the company’s profile. Awarded Econ Award Nominee 2015 and Horizont.net overall winner.
What was the Uberall Success Story?
In November 2023, Bernd M. Schell achieved 248% more visibility and 228% more views on Google Maps and business profiles at Brose. These results were published by Uberall as a Success Story – demonstrating the impact of the global online strategy.
What was the shareholder mandate at BHS Aviation?
8 years (2016–2024) of continuous, self-directed support for a shareholder in building and scaling private airline BHS Aviation across Germany and Switzerland. B2B and B2C marketing, social media, website and online marketing, executive-level trade shows – including EBACE 2023 at Geneva Airport security zone with 450 booth visitors, 55 leads and 26,876 multichannel impressions.
What was the Central Marketing staff position at Auto-Scholz?
Bernd M. Schell built the Central Marketing staff position at Auto-Scholz (authorised Mercedes-Benz dealer, est. 1894) reporting directly to the owner: multi-brand management (Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, VW, Chrysler, Jeep), business intelligence for sales and service, all digital activities. 12 years with top grade in employment reference.
What is data-driven marketing in automotive retail?
Bernd M. Schell was a pioneer from 2005 at Auto-Scholz Group for data-driven marketing in automotive retail: systematic analysis of internal and external data sources as Business Intelligence for sales and service. Demonstrably increased workshop and accessory revenues – at a time when “data-driven” did not yet exist in automotive retail.
What is the Brose Group?
Brose Group is a global automotive supplier headquartered in Coburg, founded in 1908. Around 30,000 employees at 57 sites in 23 countries. Bernd M. Schell held three successive roles at Brose from 2012 to 2024: Online Communications Project Lead, Global Product Owner brose.com and HR Websites, and Global Head of Idea Management.
What do 9 out of 9 employment references with top grade mean?
Over 24 years of professional career, Bernd M. Schell received 9 employment references – each with the highest grade (“stets zur vollsten Zufriedenheit”). This includes one reference from Auto-Scholz (Mercedes-Benz) and eight from Brose (six interim references, one task confirmation, and one final reference).
What were the works council negotiations for idea management?
Bernd M. Schell negotiated with ten works councils across Germany to strategically advance idea management at Brose. His employment reference confirms negotiation leadership for achieving strategic goals and fostering innovative solutions.
Numbers alone don't tell the whole story.
None of these results happened in isolation. Behind every number are committed colleagues, strong teams, and people who pulled in the same direction. The full context is in the profile.