Alexandra Knauer, managing director and owner of the Berlin-based laboratory instrumentation manufacturer KNAUER, has been recognized by the jury of the "Frauen unternehmen" initiative ("Women entrepreneuring") to be a role model female entrepreneur. Ms. Knauer received a certificate signed by the German Federal Minister of Economics and Energy Peter Altmaier.
Alexandra Knauer is happy to share her experience as an entrepreneur to female founders. Image Credit: KNAUER/Florian Bolk
The initiative "Frauen unternehmen" was launched in 2014 by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (BMWi) to encourage more women to take the step into self-employment.
Women at the top of companies are still in the minority today. On average, only about one in three companies in Germany is headed by a woman – in technology-related sectors, the number is even lower.
From the point of view of the initiative "Frauen unternehmen", women lack visible role models above all. It is therefore just as important not to perceive women in a leadership role as an exception and to get to know them personally as it is to pass on experience and reduce concerns.
Alexandra Knauer is now one of around 200 experienced female entrepreneurs nationwide who volunteer for the initiative to report on their working life, their motivation and the challenges of running a company. This takes place within the framework of events or visits, which are preferably but not exclusively aimed at young women in the training phase.
The Berlin entrepreneur, who took over the KNAUER company from her parents 20 years ago, has led it very successfully over the years, so that the company has grown to almost double its size in a market dominated by large international competitors.
"I am very pleased to have been chosen by the jury. I will now also gladly share my experiences at the "Frauen unternehmen" events and hope that the Corona crisis will not limit us in this for much longer. I can also imagine digital formats, with which we as a company also have good experiences," says the newly appointed role model female entrepreneur.
Alexandra Knauer has been committed for many years to the promotion of women in typical male professions, in leadership roles and as entrepreneurs, for example in the district entrepreneurial network "Connecting Women" in Berlin. She also regularly organizes the annual "Girls' Day" in her company, which she sees as an opportunity to give young girls an early insight into her technology company, where many women also work.
KNAUER Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH, a family-owned company, has been developing high-tech measuring instruments for research and science for almost 58 years. With the systems for chromatography, or more precisely liquid chromatography (HPLC), food or environmental samples can be examined for ingredients and impurities, but samples of drugs or vaccines as well. The devices are also used in SARS-CoV-2 research.
Alexandra Knauer attaches great importance to corporate responsibility, not only towards the employees but also towards the environment and society. The subject of "Corporate Social Responsibility" has therefore been a practical part of her company's work for many years.