Over three decades of experience as an international business leader. Senior postings, including the multinational tech company Siemens – as President and CEO in Hungary (2010 – 2021), CFO in Slovakia (2004 – 2010), Japan at Siemens-Asahi Medical Technologies (2000 – 2003) have positioned Mr Martin at the vanguard decentralized tech innovation.
He was president of the German Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce for three consecutive terms (2013 – 2019) and was honored by the President of Hungary (2021) for his “outstanding role in furthering R&D activities of Hungarian industry, notably in raising the standard of engineering education, as well as promoting and strengthening Hungarian-German economic relations”. He also received recognition for strengthening economic relations between Austria and Hungary from the President of Austria (2020). Together with his acknowledgment as an Honorary Citizen of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, his credentials highlight the convergence of business leadership and committed citizenship.
Q. Dale, your studies and career have taken you to many countries. You are a native German speaker, fluent in English and Hungarian, and proficient in Mandarin and French. How do you believe this multicultural/multilingual background can contribute to your role as President of EELISA?
A. I certainly believe so – having lived and worked in several countries certainly added a valuable dimension to my professional experience. Although I am just starting to get a sense of possibilities and boundaries, I would nevertheless like to emphasize the aspect of mobility. Active mobility for students is a clear aim, aiming for far more than just ‘student tourism’. It is a true opportunity to broaden not only the technical skills of students through studying in another country, but also appreciate another culture, while learning more about oneself – along with the values and advantages of one’s own ‘home’. I certainly experienced this when I went to Taiwan at the age of 20 to study Chinese for a year. A multilingual and multicultural learning experience is certainly an asset in an increasingly international environment and marketplace.
Q. Throughout your career, you have been committed to promoting innovation, education, and sustainability from the perspective of the corporate sector. How do you envision promoting these values within the higher education alliance?
A. EELISA aims to combine and integrate these values in order to provide better, sustainable, long-term solutions, creating ‘societal impact’. With the endorsement I received, my objective is to promote and support the further development of the ‘European Engineer’, as envisioned by EELISA Alliance. EELISA empowers the students’ learning experience, combining education with research and – in addition – recognizes their impact and commitment. The members of the Alliance will provide a European, intercultural, multidisciplinary, and thus valuable technical degree.
Q. Do you consider this role as an organic progression of your professional values and commitments?
A. Certainly. My professional experience has enabled me to be at the crossroads of innovation, education, and business through working with teams that provided valuable answers to truly complex technical questions. Having had the opportunity to be an active partner, combining industry, innovation, and education with sustainability was – and will be – rewarding. This is why I gladly accepted the challenge of being the President of EELISA!
