Our people

Behind the growth of the Winning Group is a diverse group of top managers and experts from various industries and countries. Whether we have been successfully doing business in our branch for more than twenty years now, or whether our career has taken a turn for the better in the Winning Group, we all have one thing in common – a passion for traditional business, and most of all the desire to build up our own project. A project that means something to us and into which we invest all our know-how.

Sebastian Wagner

Sebastian Wagner

Chief Executive Officer

Sebastian is from a small German village in the Black Forest. After studying engineering and economics in Karlsruhe, he worked for an American concern in the automotive industry for 12 years. He devoted the beginning of his career to production optimization projects and the introduction of new manufacturing projects throughout Europe. He is responsible for three factories in Germany and the Czech Republic, one of them a greenfield project. He’s been building up Winning Group since 2016, and is its majority shareholder.

Peter Smataník

Peter Smataník

Chief Financial Officer

Peter is focused upon the global development of Winning Group and improving its financial performance across all businesses. In his work, he’s able to utilize the many years of experience in the area of business consulting for mergers, acquisitions, and accounting gained though his previous work with international consulting companies. Peter is a graduate of the Prague University of Economics and Business, and is a Chartered Certified Accountant in the United Kingdom (FCCA).

Martin Drahotský

Martin Drahotský

General Counsel

Martin graduated from the Faculty of Law of Palacký University in Olomouc. After completing his studies, he worked as a law clerk and subsequently as a lawyer in renowned law firms. He most often dealt with real estate law, M&A, business obligations, litigation and the automotive field. He is a member of the Czech Bar Association. Within the Winning Group, Martin provides legal support to colleagues across the group’s broad agenda, both within day-to-day consultancy and strategic projects.

Jaroslav Pažitka

Jaroslav Pažitka

Director, Funding and Investor Relations

Jaroslav gained nine years of experience in investment banking, working in senior management positions where he was responsible for investment portfolios of both private and public investors. He was also involved in the financing of projects and the acquisition of family businesses. As a member of our group, he is now responsible for complex relations with the banking sector, financing partners, and investors. He is a member of the M&A team and is mainly responsible for transactions financing.

Marcela Zábranská

Marcela Zábranská

Director, Treasury

Marcela graduated from the Faculty of Business and Management at the Brno University of Technology, specialising in business finance and trade. During her career she has held several positions in economics and finance. She has experience with cash flow management, with European grants, insurance and business strategies. In Winning Group a. s., where she has been working since it was first stablished, she is responsible for the bank financing, lending, insurance and accounting agenda, and also for European Union grant programs.

Christoph Guhe

Christoph Guhe

Chief Commercial Officer, Winning Automotive Group

Christoph has been a top manager in Precision Forming for more than 20 years now. He specialises in production technologies for groups of suppliers in the automotive industry in the USA and Canada, focusing on solid metal forming. He has management and restructuring experience in the automotive and supply industry. He has managed global business units, boosted their competitiveness and profits, and has implemented long-term manufacturing and product strategies. He has founded new branches in Europe, China and America. Christoph is responsible for the management of Winning BLW.

Ondřej Blaho

Ondřej Blaho

Group President & GM, Construction and Development

Ondřej is an experienced manager with more than 12 years that he spent in the construction industry. He worked for a construction company for 9 years where he gained valuable experience in the development of residential constructions, and later handled the business end of building construction projects. He joined Winning Group in 2018 as the general director of the construction division where he manages the construction companies, as well as the development activities of the group.