As of March 1, 2026, Arina Zonner will join the Executive Board of the University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN) as its first Founding Vice President for Staff, Alumni and Equity. In this role, she will provide strategic leadership for these areas at the executive level, with a strong focus on fostering a modern personnel culture in academia.
“International excellence at universities requires reliable, forward-looking framework conditions and, above all, a culture in which everyone can develop sustainably and achieve top performance. The areas of employees, alumni and equal opportunities play an important role in this context. The role assumed by Arina Zonner is unique among Bavarian universities, is based on UTN’s founding concept, and is made possible by UTN’s distinct legal framework,” said Founding President Prof. Dr. Michael Huth.
He added: “We consider ourselves fortunate to have gained in Arina Zonner a proven expert in strategic human resource management as well as organizational and cultural development. With her experience, she will contribute higher education policy expertise on sustainable personnel structures at universities and will actively help shape the development of UTN.”
Bavaria’s Minister of Science, Markus Blume, also extended his congratulations: “Congratulations to UTN on its new Founding Vice President – and congratulations to Arina Zonner on this excellent responsibility! Arina Zonner is living proof that our youngest state university is breaking new ground and is not hesitant to do so at the leadership level. She brings extensive experience and expertise from the private sector and has a strong profile in the areas of human resources, process management and talent development. I look forward to our collaboration and to many innovative impulses – all the best and every success!”
Extensive Leadership Experience in HR and Organizational Development
Arina Zonner is a native of Nuremberg and closely connected to the region. After completing her training as a bank clerk, she pursued further professional qualifications alongside her career. Today, as a business psychologist (M.Sc.) and business lawyer (LL.B.), she brings more than 22 years of professional experience in the banking and consulting sectors. For over ten years, she has held senior HR leadership roles, most recently serving as Head of Human Resources and authorized signatory (Prokuristin). In addition to her leadership responsibilities, she is active as a specialist author, keynote speaker and podcaster.
In her new position, Arina Zonner will assume strategic responsibility in particular for recruitment and staff development, as well as for equity and alumni affairs. She views UTN as a distinctive actor within the German higher education landscape: “UTN stands for the interdisciplinary integration of IT, engineering and the humanities – a unique and forward-looking approach within our university landscape,” said Zonner. “At the center are the people, including those who work or study at UTN. Drawing on my many years of experience in strategic HR management, transformation, and organizational and cultural development, I aim to actively shape this process of growth.”
She further emphasized: “Over the past five years, UTN’s employees and students have already achieved extraordinary things. The development of UTN is a pioneering project with significant impact for my hometown of Nuremberg, with supra-regional and international visibility. I am very much looking forward to joining the Executive Board and the entire team as Founding Vice President for Staff, Alumni and Equity in UTN’s anniversary year.”
Press photos for download:
Press photo of the certificate presentation (Copyright: UTN)
About the University of Technology Nuremberg
The University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN), founded in 2021, is the first newly established public university in Bavaria since 1978. The UTN is a living laboratory building a university for the age of AI and the rapidly advancing changes in technology, business and society. The UTN strives to become a strong regional force in research, teaching and transfer and an internationally leading university of the 21st century with regional roots and a global outlook.
The 37-hectare, sustainable UTN campus will form the center of the new Lichtenreuth district in Nuremberg, close to the historic city center. Around 6,000 students, 200 professors and at least 2,000 employees will study and work there. Study programs will integrate aspects of technology, liberal arts, social sciences and natural sciences to ideally prepare students for the interdisciplinary requirements of the new world of work.
Contact
Head of UnitCommunication Unit
Deputy Head of UnitCommunication Unit
As of March 1, 2026, Arina Zonner will join the Executive Board of the University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN) as its first Founding Vice President for Staff, Alumni and Equity. In this role, she will provide strategic leadership for these areas at the executive level, with a strong focus on fostering a modern personnel culture in academia.
“International excellence at universities requires reliable, forward-looking framework conditions and, above all, a culture in which everyone can develop sustainably and achieve top performance. The areas of employees, alumni and equal opportunities play an important role in this context. The role assumed by Arina Zonner is unique among Bavarian universities, is based on UTN’s founding concept, and is made possible by UTN’s distinct legal framework,” said Founding President Prof. Dr. Michael Huth.
He added: “We consider ourselves fortunate to have gained in Arina Zonner a proven expert in strategic human resource management as well as organizational and cultural development. With her experience, she will contribute higher education policy expertise on sustainable personnel structures at universities and will actively help shape the development of UTN.”
Bavaria’s Minister of Science, Markus Blume, also extended his congratulations: “Congratulations to UTN on its new Founding Vice President – and congratulations to Arina Zonner on this excellent responsibility! Arina Zonner is living proof that our youngest state university is breaking new ground and is not hesitant to do so at the leadership level. She brings extensive experience and expertise from the private sector and has a strong profile in the areas of human resources, process management and talent development. I look forward to our collaboration and to many innovative impulses – all the best and every success!”
Extensive Leadership Experience in HR and Organizational Development
Arina Zonner is a native of Nuremberg and closely connected to the region. After completing her training as a bank clerk, she pursued further professional qualifications alongside her career. Today, as a business psychologist (M.Sc.) and business lawyer (LL.B.), she brings more than 22 years of professional experience in the banking and consulting sectors. For over ten years, she has held senior HR leadership roles, most recently serving as Head of Human Resources and authorized signatory (Prokuristin). In addition to her leadership responsibilities, she is active as a specialist author, keynote speaker and podcaster.
In her new position, Arina Zonner will assume strategic responsibility in particular for recruitment and staff development, as well as for equity and alumni affairs. She views UTN as a distinctive actor within the German higher education landscape: “UTN stands for the interdisciplinary integration of IT, engineering and the humanities – a unique and forward-looking approach within our university landscape,” said Zonner. “At the center are the people, including those who work or study at UTN. Drawing on my many years of experience in strategic HR management, transformation, and organizational and cultural development, I aim to actively shape this process of growth.”
She further emphasized: “Over the past five years, UTN’s employees and students have already achieved extraordinary things. The development of UTN is a pioneering project with significant impact for my hometown of Nuremberg, with supra-regional and international visibility. I am very much looking forward to joining the Executive Board and the entire team as Founding Vice President for Staff, Alumni and Equity in UTN’s anniversary year.”
Press photos for download:
Press photo of the certificate presentation (Copyright: UTN)
About the University of Technology Nuremberg
The University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN), founded in 2021, is the first newly established public university in Bavaria since 1978. The UTN is a living laboratory building a university for the age of AI and the rapidly advancing changes in technology, business and society. The UTN strives to become a strong regional force in research, teaching and transfer and an internationally leading university of the 21st century with regional roots and a global outlook.
The 37-hectare, sustainable UTN campus will form the center of the new Lichtenreuth district in Nuremberg, close to the historic city center. Around 6,000 students, 200 professors and at least 2,000 employees will study and work there. Study programs will integrate aspects of technology, liberal arts, social sciences and natural sciences to ideally prepare students for the interdisciplinary requirements of the new world of work.
Contact
Peter Diehl
Communication Unit
Agnes Pelzl
Communication Unit