Austrian Federal Minister for European and International Affairs assumes WDLS-EU 2011 patronage
Dr Spindelegger; Austrian Foreign Minister

True to its tradition WDLS-EU 2011 is once again featuring and drawing on the expertise of high-ranking international and national CEOs, diversity experts and practitioners, organisational development specialist, policy and decision makers, etc. WDLS-EU has the honour to announce that the patron of this years Summit will be the Austrian Foreign Minister Dr Spindelegger.

Dr Michael Spindelegger is currently the Austrian Federal Minister for European and International Affairs. Since 2009 he is also Head of ÖAAB, the “Employees’ Association of the Austrian People’s Party”. Before serving as Federal Foreign Minister, Dr Spindelegger was the second President of the Austrian National Council and between 2002 and 2006 he was head of the Austrian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. In 2000 Dr Spindelegger served for six years as the Deputy Parliamentary Group Leader of the Austrian Peoples Party (ÖVP) and was a Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe during the same years. Between 1996 and 2006 he was the ÖVP party’s Speaker on Foreign Affairs and Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs. From 1995 to 1996 Dr Spindelegger was a Member of the European Parliament (ÖVP-EVP), in Brussels and a Member of the Parliamentary Committee on Economics, Currency Issues and Industrial Policy, Deputy Member in the Committee for Social Issues and Employment. From 1992 – 1993 Dr Spindelegger was a member of the Federal Chamber in the Austrian Parliament. Dr Spindelegger started off his political career as the speaker on European Relations at the ÖAAB.

After graduating as “Doktor iuris” in 1983 from the Faculty of Law of the University of Vienna, Dr Spindelegger started his professional career as an Assistant Lecturer and Researcher at the Institute of Criminal Law. He also served as a Judges’ Assistant at several Courts of Law in Vienna. Between 1984 and 1987 he was a Civil Servant for the Federal State Lower Austria where he was employed both at the Headquarters as well as in the Country Councils of Gmünd and Baden. He subsequently, between 1987 and 1990, became a Member in the Cabinet of the Minister of Defence. Between 1990 and 1993 Dr Spindelegger took part in various Trainee Programs and internships at the Federation of Austrian Industrialists, Alcatel Austria, Siemens and the Austrian Power Industry. Between 1993 and 1994
he was employed at GiroCredit (an Austrian bank) within the Secretary of the Board in the field of Strategic Management.