BMDS strengthens ZenDiS and brings tech expertise to the management board
From now, Leonhard Kugler will manage the business together with Pamela Krosta-Hartl.
Bochum, 09.04.2026.The Center for Digital Sovereignty in Public Administration (ZenDiS) is taking the next evolutionary step. With the appointment of Leonhard Kugler to the management board, the BMDS is supporting the strategic and content-related further development. The aim is to activate the open source ecosystem more strongly. In his new role, Leonhard Kugler is now also responsible for the commercial area in addition to development. He will manage ZenDiS together with the previous Managing Director Pamela Krosta-Hartl, whose focus is on market presence and customer business. Leonhard Kugler succeeds Alexander Pockrandt, who is leaving the company.
Leonhard Kugler has held a management position at ZenDiS since March 2024 and has played a key role in building up the organization. He was initially responsible for platform development and, together with his team, developed the openCode platform (www.opencode.de) into the central infrastructure component for the sovereign digitalization of public administration in Germany. Since mid-2025, an integrated development department has also been created under his leadership at ZenDiS, where the further development of all offerings and solutions - including the sovereign office and collaboration suite openDesk - will come together.
Markus Richter, State Secretary in the Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernization (BMDS) and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of ZenDiS: "With Leonhard Kugler, a proven technology expert is taking on responsibility in the management of the Zentrum Digitale Souveränität (ZenDiS). Together with Pamela Krosta-Hartl, they will lead ZenDiS until further notice. This provides additional technical depth and implementation power in a decisive phase. My thanks go to Alexander Pockrandt for his great commitment and important development work."
Leonhard Kugler brings around 15 years of management experience from digital agencies and NGOs. He has been working in depth on the digital transformation of public administration since 2021.
