Dieter Zetsche (1953) studied electrical engineering at the University of Karlsruhe and completed his doctorate in engineering in 1982 at the University of Paderborn. 

In 1976, Zetsche joined the research department of Daimler-Benz and assumed thereafter several leadership positions within Daimler-Benz in Brasil, Argentina and the US. 

In 1998, he joined Daimler Chrysler's board of management. After running the Commercial Vehicle Group of Daimler Chrysler, he served as the president and CEO of the Chrysler Group from mid-2000 to December 2005. In 2006, Zetsche became chairman of the Board of management of DaimlerChrysler (now Daimler AG) and head of Mercedes-Benz until May 2019.

Dieter Zetsche is Chair of the Supervisory Board of TUI Group since 2019. He is also a member of the Aldi Süd Advisory Board and in several other companies.