Haufe Group
 | |
| Type | Societas Europaea; family-owned |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software, publishing, professional training |
| Founded | 1934 |
| Founder | Rudolf Haufe |
| Headquarters | , Germany |
| Key people | Birte Hackenjos (CEO) Harald Wagner (CFO) |
| Revenue | More than €600 million (FY 2025/26)[1] |
Number of employees | c. 2,700 (2026)[2] |
| Website | www |
Haufe Group SE is a German media and software company based in Freiburg im Breisgau. Its main businesses include software company Lexware and professional training provider Haufe Akademie. The group offers information services and training for accounting, payroll, taxation and human resources.[3]
History
[edit]The company was founded by Rudolf Haufe in Berlin in 1934 and moved to Freiburg in 1951.[4] The publisher specialized in information on taxation, law, accounting and human resources.[5]
Haufe entered professional training in 1978 with a seminar business that later developed into Haufe Akademie.[6]
A major expansion into software followed in 1993, when Haufe acquired the Freiburg software company Lexware, which develops accounting and business software. The acquisition helped shift the group away from its dependence on specialist publications.[7]
In 2010, Haufe reorganized its publishing and software businesses under Haufe-Lexware GmbH & Co. KG, bringing the Haufe and Lexware operations more closely together.[8]
During the 2010s, software and online services became the main focus of the group.[9][10]
Business
[edit]Software and information services
[edit]Haufe provides software for areas such as human resources, taxation, accounting and employment law. Its professional information products include Haufe Personal Office for human resources, Haufe Steuer Office for tax professionals and Haufe Finance Office for finance and accounting.
Lexware develops accounting, payroll, tax and business-management software, primarily for self-employed people and small businesses.[7] The group also operates smartsteuer, an online service for preparing and filing German income-tax returns, and Haufe X360, a cloud-based enterprise resource planning system for small and medium-sized businesses.
Training and publishing
[edit]Haufe Akademie provides professional training and organizational-development services.[6] The group also remains active in specialist publishing; in 2026, Haufe ranked first in an annual ranking of the 100 largest German-language publishing companies.[11]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Haufe Group steigert Umsatz in anspruchsvollem Marktumfeld um sieben Prozent" (in German). Haufe Group. 23 July 2026. Retrieved 19 September 2026 – via Presseportal.
- ↑ "Haufe News – Aktuelles & Pressemitteilungen" (in German). Haufe. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ Westkämper, Anna (14 September 2026). "Haufe Group: Warum der Mittelstand jetzt in Start-ups investieren sollte". Handelsblatt (in German). Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ Zimmermann, Frank (6 June 2013). "Haufe: Altes Verlagshaus wird abgerissen". Badische Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "Global Publishing Leaders 2012: Haufe-Lexware". Publishers Weekly. 25 June 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "Haufe Akademie" (in German). Haufe Akademie. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- 1 2 "Kannibalen aus Freiburg" (PDF). Manager Magazin (in German). No. 10. 2014. pp. 54–57. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "Haufe strukturiert um und heißt ab 2010 Haufe-Lexware". Börsenblatt (in German). 3 December 2009. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "Global Publishing Leaders 2015: Haufe-Lexware". Publishers Weekly. 26 June 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ Hofmann, Markus; Bürckholdt, Ronny Gert (29 November 2017). "Birte Hackenjos: Keine Angst vor der Digitalisierung!". Badische Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 19 September 2026.
- ↑ "Fachinformation legt gegen den Branchentrend zu" (in German). Deutsche Fachpresse. Retrieved 19 September 2026.