Dieter Adam was appointed as the CEO of the New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association in May 2015 and has also been acting as the Executive Director for The Manufacturer’s Network since April 2019. 

Dieter was born and grew up in Germany, with a formal education in plant biotechnology, gaining a Ph.D. He held research positions in this field in both Germany and Denmark, before moving to New Zealand to take up an academic position at the University of Waikato in 1986. 

He moved into the commercial world in 1994, holding senior management positions with a focus on innovation and business development, as well as acting as an Innovation consultant, primarily in the biotechnology and agritech fields.

More recently Dieter worked in various roles at NZTE, focused on international business development, working alongside, primarily, food and beverage manufacturers.

Through his involvement with The Manufacturers’ Network, Dieter is using this experience and his passion and knowledge of innovation to improve conditions for manufacturers and help them thrive in the challenging modern global environment.  In particular, his focus has been on supporting manufacturers who wish to improve their operations through the use of digital manufacturing technologies and improving the skills of their employees.