Kirchdorfer Group: Leadership Change at the Top
CEO Erich Frommwald hands over the reins of the international group
31 May 2025 marked the end of an era at the Kirchdorfer Group: After more than 30 years with company, including 21 years at its helm – 18 as sole CEO and three in partnership with Michael Wardian – Erich Frommwald is stepping down from the management board. Since January of this year, he has jointly led the group with Joao Paulo Pereira da Silva and Michael Wardian as a triumvirate. Now, Pereira and Wardian will assume joint leadership of the internationally operating group.
A legacy marked by major milestones
Erich Frommwald, a native of Upper Styria and graduate of the University of Graz, began his career in 1994 as assistant to then-partner Max Machanek. After Machanek’s death in 2004, the shareholders entrusted Frommwald with responsibility for the group’s continued expansion.
Under his leadership, the Kirchdorfer Group transformed from a regional traditional company into an internationally active building materials corporation, now comprising over 50 companies in 14 countries and employing around 1700 people. Today, the group ranks among the industry’s leading providers, generating annual revenues of more than 370 million euros.
At a festive gala on 15 May, the Chair of the Supervisory Board of Kirchdorfer Zementwerk, all the shareholders, Governor of Upper Austria Thomas Stelzer, and numerous companions paid tribute to Frommwald’s achievements for the Kirchdorfer Group.
Upon his departure, Frommwald said: “At 64, I feel the time has come to pass on responsibility for our group. The Kirchdorfer Group and the Kirchdorfer Lions have always been close to my heart, and I am grateful for the shared efforts and collective successes. I wish my successors every success in their decisions, and the company all the best for the future.”
Frommwald will remain connected to the Kirchdorfer Group as a adviser and in several supervisory board roles. This new dual leadership ensures continuity, innovative strength and sustainable development-both for the group’s regional roots and its international competitiveness.
