Our People

Our continuously growing team consists of a broad mix of experienced industry consultants and functional experts who can hit the ground running from day 1. We understand our clients' issues because we are specialized on the industry.

The following provides an experience overview of some of our people.

Joachim Klein

Managing Director

Mr. Klein is of German-Swedish origin and holds a master's degree in business administration. Over the past 9 years he has worked with global companies in the sector to define strategies, improve performance, transform supply chains and integrate acquired companies. Prior to founding StepChange, he worked for 10 years as a management consultant with a large international management consulting and technology firm, where he was operationally responsible for building the pulp and paper consulting practice. In addition to his specialization in the forest, pulp & paper industry, Mr. Klein has consulting experience from a wide range of other industries.

Steven E. Smith

Senior Expert

Steve holds a Paper Science and Engineering degree and is a results driven expert in the pulp, paper, tissue, packaging, and forest products industries with over 20 years of line operations, supply chain management and consulting experience. Steve has focused on manufacturing improvement, supply chain transformation, P&L and supply chain management. Additionally Steve specializes in lean manufacturing and other best-in-class methodologies that drive accelerated and sustained performance improvement in process manufacturing environments. Prior to joining StepChange, Steve held a number of management positions including General Manager of a paper mill and Vice President Supply Chain Management on corporate level for US pulp and paper corporations.

Ralf Möbus

Senior Project Manager

Ralf holds a degree in industrial management and marketing. He has expertise in sales & performance management, supply chain, turnaround and operational improvement projects.

Before joining StepChange Consulting, Ralf worked for six years as a management consultant to the pulp & paper industry. Additionally, he has five years experience working in different sales functions for a French chemicals company.

Stefan Schönberger

Senior Project Manager

Stefan has extensive consulting experience in operational improvement, turnaround management and post merger integration projects. Before joining StepChange Consulting, Stefan worked for an international management consultancy focusing on the pulp and paper industry. He holds a Master's degree in business administration from University of Applied Sciences, Wiener Neustadt, Austria.

Stefanie Jungmann

Consultant

Stefanie holds a BS in International Business and an MBA in Management from Webber, International University, Florida. Stefanie joined StepChange Consulting in late 2006 and has experience in working capital reduction, operational performance improvement, procurement and logistics.

Alexander Wirth

Consultant

Alexander holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Johannes Kepler University Linz. He has expertise in supply chain management, working capital reduction, turnaround management and operational performance improvement. Prior to joining StepChange in 2009, Alexander worked for an international management consultancy firm.