Helmut Gunter Wilhelm Panke[1] (born on 31 August 1946[2][3] in Fürstenwalde, East Germany[4]) is a German manager and physicist who has been holding board membership in several companies - Microsoft, Bayer AG and Singapore Airlines.

[3] In 1982, he started at Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW)[5] as a head of planning and control of the research and development division,[7] before assuming management functions in 1985.

[7] Over the next 20 years, Panke worked his way up through the company, working in nearly every department: he served as the chairman of the management board at BMW (UK) Capital PLC,[8] and as chairman and CEO of BMW (US) Holding Corporation from 1993 to 1996, he managed the US manufacturing facility that was responsible for building, as well as corporate planning, organisation, staff, IT, finance and sales.

He left the BoD at the Annual General Meeting of 2015, stepping down due to regulatory provisions regarding the term of office.

[8] In addition, Panke has held the following mandates: During his time at BMW, Panke served as a member of the board of directors of ACEA, the Association des Constructeurs Européens d’Automobiles, Belgium,[8] a member of the board of directors of VDA, the association of the German automobile industry,[8] and of the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany.