S&Z Team
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Sina Beecken
Consultant
Sina Beecken
Consultant
Sina Beecken advises German and international clients on developing materiality and benchmarking analyses as well as with sustainability reporting. In addition, she supports clients in conducting Hotspot analyses to identify sustainability risks and opportunities along complex value chains.
Sina Beecken studied Sustainability Science (M.Sc.) at Leuphana University in Lüneburg, where she already completed her B.Sc. in Environmental Sciences and Business Administration. In her studies, Sina Beecken focused on strategic sustainability management and communication. Furthermore, the inter- and transdisciplinary orientation of the study program enabled her to develop holistic approaches to solving complex CR challenges. In her master’s thesis, Sina Beecken dealt with the reduction of the attitude-behavior-gap in online retail through the use digital green nudges.
Sina Beecken gained practical experience during an internship at S&Z. From fall 2018 to 2019, Sina Beecken supported S&Z as an analyst, and from November 2019 to August 2022 as a working student. Since November 2022, Sina Beecken has been working for S&Z as a consultant.
Sina Beecken speaks German and English.
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Gabriel Berg
Intern
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Juska Dietrich
Office Manager
Juska Dietrich
Office Manager
Juska Dietrich is our Office Manager for the Hamburg office. Juska Dietrich has been supporting S&Z since 2019 and is the contact person for all questions relating to the back office.
Juska Dietrich speaks German and English.
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Kerstin Domin
Art Director
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Levke Klütz
Human Resources Specialist
Levke Klütz
Human Resources Specialist
Levke Klütz is our HR responsible and is your contact for all questions regarding applications and S&Z as an employer.
Levke Klütz studied International Business Administration (B.A.) with an emphasis on the Hispanophone world and a focus on International Organization & Human Resources at Furtwangen University in Villingen-Schwenningen, Germany. After her bachelor's degree, Levke Klütz completed the Master in Management & Human Resources (M.Sc.) at Leuphana University in Lüneburg, Germany. The interdisciplinary master's program examines HR work from the perspectives of business administration, psychology and law, and also allowed insights into sustainability in HR management and the social dimension of reporting.
During her studies, Levke Klütz was able to gain practical experience in diversity management at AUDI AG and HR support and development at Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG.
Since May 2023, Levke Klütz has been supporting our team as a Human Resources Specialist and is responsible for HR related activities, such as recruiting, HR development and employee retention.
Levke Klütz speaks German, English and Spanish.
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Iris Liu
Consultant
Iris Liu
Consultant
Iris Liu advises American and international clients on conducting materiality analyses, developing sustainability goals and strategies, and evaluating their sustainability performance, including quantifying their carbon footprint.
Iris Liu holds a Master of Management Sciences (MMS) in Global Business and Society from Yale University, where she focused on the intersection of business and sustainability. Her master’s education included hands-on learning where she worked closely with local environmental justice and national non-profit organizations. Iris Liu also holds a Master of Management (MM) and Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in Combined Majors in Science (chemistry, life sciences, and computer science) from the University of British Columbia (UBC). During her graduate studies at UBC, Iris Liu completed a social sustainability internship with the Social Policy and Projects team at the City of Vancouver.
Iris Liu previously worked in healthcare research and spent several summers in Uganda working on global health research studies and projects. Prior to joining S&Z, Iris Liu was the Sustainability Business Coordinator at the Center for Sustainable Healthcare at the Yale New Haven Health System (YNHHS). She assisted in the development of the sustainability strategic plan, managed graduate student teams working on water conservation and food waste reduction projects, and coordinated the establishment of a health system-wide sustainability governance structure. Iris Liu previously worked as a freelance analyst for an ESG consulting firm, NPV Associates.
Iris Liu speaks English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.
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Mayana Niebauer
Junior Consultant
Mayana Niebauer
Junior Consultant
Mayana Niebauer advises national and international organizations on sustainability reporting, the conduction of materiality analyses and the identification of sustainability risks along complex value chains.
Mayana Niebauer studied Sociology and Political Science (B.A.) at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich. After her bachelor’s degree, Mayana Niebauer completed a master's degree in Politics & Technology (M.Sc.) at the Technical University of Munich. During her studies, she focused on the topics of renewable energies and sustainability. In her master’s thesis, Mayana Niebauer analyzed the impact of democratic institutions, e.g. free and fair elections, on the environmental performance of countries.
Alongside her studies, Mayana Niebauer gained practical experience through internships and as a working student at various research institutes in the field of political science and renewable energies. Mayana Niebauer also completed an internship at S&Z. From summer 2022 to 2023, Mayana Niebauer supported S&Z as a working student and from September 2023 to January 2024 as an analyst. Since February 2024, Mayana Niebauer has been working for S&Z as a junior consultant.
Mayana Niebauer speaks German and English.
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Jasmin Parys
Working Student
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Manfred Richter
Communication Expert
Manfred Richter
Communication Expert
Manfred Richter is always at the service of S&Z for ambitious communication cases. He ensures that the conceptualization and implementation of reporting projects are geared toward target groups.
As an economics graduate, he worked for about 20 years in corporate communications for various corporations. Since 2009, he, along with Claus-Martin Carlsberg, has led the agency Carlsberg & Richter in Munich. Previously, he oversaw BMW Group’s Department of Consolidated Statements, Corporate Publications, and Sustainability.
With his professional experience, he is a competent point of contact for all questions of corporate communications - from basic communication strategy and design to actual implementation. As an expert in corporate and financial publications, he ensures above all that texts and stylistic aspects are reflective of the specific target group. This creates strategies and communication schemes which can be seamlessly integrated into existing structures and will always perform in the best interests of the company.
The communication of sustainability is one of the priorities of Manfred Richter’s work: “No topic is so multifaceted and complex as this. In the long run, only companies with credible, understandable, and stakeholder-oriented content will be successful in their communications. The cooperation of sustainability experts and communication experts provides the perfect conditions for this.“
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Sebastian Schaarschmidt
Principal
Sebastian Schaarschmidt
Principal
Sebastian Schaarschmidt supports national and international clients in implementing and using CR software, as well as in the development of sustainability and climate change adaptation strategies. His areas of expertise include developing materiality analyses and sustainability performance indicators.
Sebastian Schaarschmidt received his Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from the University of Hamburg, where he focused on statistical modeling. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science from Leuphana University in Lüneburg, specializing in sustainability management. As part of his bachelor's thesis, he analyzed climate change as a risk factor for companies.
Prior to joining S&Z, Sebastian Schaarschmidt gained professional experience in the logistics department of a wholesaler, where he was responsible for data analyses, as well as in an industrial company. Furthermore, he added to his scientific expertise with an internship in a research institute.
Sebastian Schaarschmidt speaks German and English.
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Joachim Schlange
Senior Advisor
Joachim Schlange
Senior Advisor
Joachim Schlange is Co-Founder and until the end of 2023 was Managing Partner of Schlange, Zamostny & Co. GmbH and President of S&Z North America Inc.
As Managing Director at Systain Consulting GmbH, a subsidiary of the Otto Group, Joachim Schlange built up the CR consultancy in 2002. As a spin-off, he co-founded S&C in 2006. Between 2000 and 2002, he was Managing Director of Tiscali Germany, a subsidiary of the Italian Tiscali S.p.A., which at that point was one of the leading European internet service providers. Prior to that, from 1990 to 1999, Joachim Schlange was Associate Partner and Co-Head of the global Transportation Competence Center at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants in Germany. Between 1982 and 1990, he was Director and Vice-President of Investment Banking at Deutsche Bank AG in Frankfurt, London, and Lisbon.
Joachim Schlange gained his first experiences during his time in New York as an investment banker at J.Henry Schroder from 1978 to 1982. He graduated from Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business with an MBA in 1982.
Joachim Schlange is married and has 3 daughters. He has been a member of the Board of Trustees for the Katrin Rohde Foundation in Germany and in the USA since 2008. Furthermore, he has been a member of the Sustainability Committee of the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce since 2015.
Joachim Schlange speaks German (native language) and is fluent in English and Portuguese.
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Matilde Schlange
Consultant
Matilde Schlange
Consultant
Matilde Schlange advises German and international clients on sustainability reporting and the assessment of their sustainability performance. Her competencies include concept development for materiality analyses, climate strategies, and the preparation of CO2 footprints.
Matilde Schlange studied Business Administration and Economics (B.Sc.) with a major in Finance at the University of Passau and Bocconi University in Milan, and holds a M.Sc. in International Management from Esade Ramon Llull Business School in Barcelona. As part of her master's degree, Matilde Schlange advised two Spanish NGOs on the topic of impact management and helped them establish a Theory of Change, as well as define appropriate impact metrics. Her master's thesis focused on impact investing, where Matilde Schlange analyzed what kind of impact different investor syndicates have on social enterprises.
Prior to her master's degree, Matilde Schlange worked as an analyst at Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG, a subsidiary of the KfW Group), where she was involved in private equity investments in Africa, managing a portfolio of approximately € 200 million and assisting in various new investments. Her first practical experience was previously gained in various internships in project financing of renewable energies in emerging markets, as well as in financial advisory at a global auditing and consulting firm.
Matilde Schlange speaks German, English and Portuguese.
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Dr. Heike Schulze
Senior Expert
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Carolina Zarta
Consultant
Carolina Zarta
Consultant
Carolina Zarta supports North American and international clients with the assessment of their sustainability performance, the development of materiality analyses, sustainability performance indicators and reporting, hotspot analyses in the value chain, as well as with conducting stakeholder surveys.
Carolina Zarta studied Sustainability Management (M.Sc.) at Columbia University in the City of New York. During her studies, she focused on corporate sustainability, analyzing opportunities to integrate sustainability into value chains, clean energy, and climate change. In her master’s capstone, Carolina Zarta worked with the UNDP Inclusive Development and Growth (IDG) on competencies and traits for the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Prior to that, Carolina Zarta received her bachelor’s degree (B.E.) in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá (Colombia). In her bachelor’s thesis, she analyzed sustainable agriculture practices as a business case.
Carolina Zarta gained professional experience through previous strategy consulting and project work in the private sector in Colombia working with the IT industry, financial services, and logistics and transportation. She was also actively involved in pro-bono research and consulting projects with diverse student groups while she studied at Columbia University.
Carolina Zarta speaks Spanish and English.