Almost half of managing directors live less than five kilometres from their company

German corporations are managed from close by. 48.0% of managing directors resident in Germany live less than five kilometres from the registered office of their company; the median distance is 5.7 kilometres. This is the result of an analysis by HDH Group Research of 350,489 management mandates.

Only 4.2% of managing directors live three hundred kilometres or more from their company. The distance is greatest in Health and social work, with a median of 11.7 kilometres, where operators run several facilities from one location.

Seven in ten companies with a single person at the top

70.6% of active corporations are managed by a single person. In 61.6% there is neither a second person in management nor a holder of registered power of attorney; these are 615,208 companies whose capacity to act depends on a single individual.

One in five people runs several companies

Of 978,271 people in management and representation, 19.5% run more than one company. 3,882 people hold ten or more mandates; the largest number in one hand is 504. Through shared members of management, 43.2% of all companies are linked to at least one other. The median age of a managing director is 52 years; 4.9% live abroad.

Method

The analysis covers management, power of attorney and liquidation of corporations as of 23 October 2026. Distance is the straight line distance between place of residence and registered office of the company, where both can be located. People are recognised across companies where their details allow this unambiguously.

The report

This item is based on the report “Who runs Germany's companies” by HDH Group Research. It contains all figures and tables, the definition of the population and a section on method and limitations: Who runs Germany's companies, also as PDF.