DigitalService appoints tech pioneer Erik Dörnenburg as its new CTO
Berlin, 3 February 2026
Erik Dörnenburg has been appointed Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of DigitalService, effective immediately. As a member of the executive team, he is responsible for the growing organization’s strategic technological direction and for architecture and technology decisions in projects with the German federal public administration.
Christina Rieke Lang, CEO of DigitalService
An effective digital government needs strategic vision, a deep understanding of technology, and extensive implementation experience. Erik Dörnenburg brings all of this to the role. I’m delighted that we’ve been able to appoint him as CTO at DigitalService. His years of experience in innovation and digital transformation in other established industries – at a cultural, organizational, and technological level – make him the ideal person for this role.
Erik Dörnenburg, CTO of DigitalService
Modern software engineering – encompassing agility, open source software, and architecture with minimal complexity – has been central to my work throughout my career. I want to harness the potential of new technologies and work with our partners to create digital applications that genuinely benefit people. I’m excited that I now get to bring my experience to bear at DigitalService and further improve its implementation capacity.
Erik Dörnenburg is an influential figure in international software development. He has been shaping the development of modern software systems for over 30 years and is an advocate of agile values, open source software, and sustainable engineering. His professional focus is on modern software architecture, reducing technological complexity, and developing user-centered, future-proof solutions. He has a particular interest in new technologies and software excellence.
In 2002, Erik Dörnenburg joined Thoughtworks, an international technology consultancy, where he was instrumental in establishing Thoughtworks Germany. Within twelve years, the German subsidiary grew from zero to around 550 employees. Dörnenburg most recently held the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Europe, a role in which he shaped the company’s technological direction at European level.
Erik Dörnenburg began his academic career with a degree in Computer Science from the University of Dortmund, after which he studied Computer Science and Linguistics at University College Dublin.
In addition, Erik Dörnenburg is a popular speaker at international conferences of experts. He has also co-authored several books in his field and been active for many years in the open source community and the Green Software Foundation.
Erik Dörnenburg now heads up the 66-strong Engineering department at DigitalService, where he is responsible for the organization’s technological strategy. Drawing on his expertise, he will make a significant contribution to further enhancing the German federal public administration’s digital capabilities through software solutions.
About DigitalService
To achieve this, DigitalService works closely with the federal government to develop and operate innovative digital solutions through interdisciplinary teams while establishing the necessary foundations. Even before DigitalService was founded, the Tech4Germany and Work4Germany fellowship programs brought technical and methodological expertise to the administration, helping to bring the benefits of new working methods to life and improve the implementation of digitalization projects.
DigitalService was established in October 2020 as a federally owned limited liability company and is wholly owned by the federal government. It emerged from the non-profit start-up 4Germany, which was founded in 2019.
Press contact
Phoebe Köster
Communications Managerin
phoebe.koester@digitalservice.bund.de