On 19 April 2012 during CIO CITY, European Commissioner Neelie Kroes will hand out the European CIO of the Year Awards 2012. Carsten Bernhard, Vice President IT / CTO of AutoScout24 is one of the 13 nominees. Check out his profile below.

Carsten Bernhard is managing the IT operations of AutoScout24. As a truly European enterprise, AutoScout24 is used by more than 10 million people and present in 18 countries all across the continent. Bernhard's task is to develop new functionalities as well as manage the site’s operations and its backend functions.

AutoScout24 is on the leading edge of innovative technologies and methodologies, using agile software development processes that are putting responsibilities into the hands of independent teams. Further, he is pushing forward the implementation of advanced deployment technologies that are enabling changes to the websites live multiple times a day. "We have worked hard to increase the business agility of AutoScout24", says Carsten Bernhard. "IT is no longer a bottleneck – it’s an enabler."

By making possible and encouraging small changes on a frequent basis, AutoScout24 is solidifying its position as the Europe-wide largest online car market. A fact that the German IT-newspapers CIO and ComputerWoche have recognized, awarding Bernhard the title of "CIO of the year 2011" in the category of small and medium companies with up to 2.000 employees.

“In reality, this is all about the team. My focus is to enable our people to work independently and efficiently and to move decisions to the right level. The power of our teams has pushed us forward and at the same time has increased their feeling of responsibility, commitment and motivation .”

Carsten Bernhard has a hybrid background of studies in Computer Science (James Madison University, USA) as well as in business administration (European Business School, Germany). He has worked in investment banking IT at large German banks as well as for startups in Silicon Valley. When it comes to spending his spare time, Bernhard loves the mountains both in summer and in winter.