The Supervisory Boards of Vienna Insurance Group, Wiener Städtische Versicherung and DONAU Versicherung approved a series of senior management changes on 14 April, effective 1 July 2026.

At Group level, VIG is expanding its Managing Board from seven to eight members, reflecting ongoing business growth. Judit Havasi and Sonja Raus have been appointed to the Board, while Gerhard Lahner has been named Second Deputy CEO. The mandates of all Board members have been extended until 30 June 2031.

As part of the reshuffle, Harald Riener will leave the VIG Managing Board to become CEO of DONAU Versicherung, succeeding Havasi.

At Wiener Städtische Versicherung, Manuel Schalk will join the Managing Board, replacing Sonja Raus, who moves to the Group level.

With these changes, VIG’s Managing Board will be led by CEO Hartwig Löger, alongside Deputy CEOs Peter Höfinger and Gerhard Lahner, and members Judit Havasi, Liane Hirner, Gábor Lehel, Christoph Rath and Sonja Raus.

The appointments underline VIG’s focus on strengthening leadership capacity and ensuring continuity across its key markets and business lines.

Professional overviews:

Judit Havasi studied law in Vienna and Budapest and has worked in the Group since 2000. She began her career at the Hungarian Group company UNION Biztosító, where she joined the Managing Board in 2005, before moving to the Wiener Städtische Managing Board in 2009 and then the VIG Holding Managing Board in 2016. Since 2020, Judit Havasi has been the CEO of DONAU Versicherung. 

Gerhard Lahner studied business administration and has been working for VIG for 25 years. He was a member of the Managing Board of the Austrian Group companies Wiener Städtische and DONAU, and also of the Czech companies Kooperativa and ČPP. Gerhard Lahner has been a member of the VIG Managing Board since 2020 and, in his role as Chief Operations Officer, is responsible for areas including IT, asset management and capital management within the Group. 

Sonja Raus studied law and business administration. In 2009, she took charge of VIG’s M&A activities, headed the Group’s subsidiaries department and has also held various Supervisory Board positions in Group companies. She joined the Wiener Städtische Managing Board in 2024, where her responsibilities include the life insurance line of business.

Harald Riener studied social and economic sciences and started his VIG career in 1998. Among others, he headed the Group’s marketing department and subsequently took on the role of CEO of the Croatian Group company. From 2014 to 2019, he was responsible for sales and marketing on the DONAU Managing Board. Harald Riener has been a member of the Managing Board of Vienna Insurance Group since 2020, where he is responsible for Retail Insurance Business Support & Customer Experience, as well as for Poland, the Baltic States and Ukraine. 

Manuel Schalk studied law and, after passing his bar exam, became a partner at Schönherr. In 2014, he moved into the insurance industry. Since then, he has headed the legal department of Wiener Städtische and DONAU, and in 2024 he also took over as Chair of the Legal Committee of the Austrian Insurance Association (VVO).