Q&A with Siemens CEO, Barbara Humpton

Barbara Humpton is the CEO of 西门子 USA. This conversation is from an episode of the CityAge Podcast recorded in 2022, and has been condensed and edited for clarity. Listen to the episode here.?

CityAge: A lot of people might consider Siemens to be a manufacturing or engineering company. How would you describe the company today?

Barbara Humpton: The way we talk about Siemens right now is a focused technology company. And I think we are sector-defining at this moment. We're a company that's combining the real world we've been working in, we still manufacture things, but now we're also bringing the tools of the virtual world to bear. It’s in this combination that suddenly we have new capabilities that have never existed before. That's where we're putting our know-how today.?

CityAge: Siemens has transitioned from a company just focused on the physical to now on the digital, too. How do we transition our cities and our workforces to the digital realm?

Humpton: It takes people. There have to be leaders in our communities who have a vision for where they're taking their community. And then technologists like us can come in, with a little bit of the art of the possible…The most important thing for us to do is make sure that we get to know each other – folks leading cities getting to know the technologists who can help bring new tools into their field.

CityAge: How are you seeing cities across America address their transportation needs and how is Siemens helping them?

Humpton: Thought leaders in cities across the US are recognizing that transit can be a form of driving equality. Greater access to jobs, greater access to fantastic neighborhoods, etc. We're seeing people look at transit not simply as a way to build corridors through their communities, but as a way to actually structure and organize what happens in their communities. It’s an exciting time to be looking at the triple play of economic development, sustainability, and overall equity for the citizens of the town. I'm excited about both of those, but we also play a role in the electrification of personal vehicles as well…Siemens has made a tremendous investment, and we've made a commitment to build a million electric vehicle chargers here in the US over the next four years.

CityAge: Describe your experience working with the federal government these days.

Humpton: We're using our voice every time we can to bring optimism and really to urge not only our administration, but the lawmakers as well, that the number one thing the business community needs is stability, and particularly in the area of infrastructure. That the work we do has to persist for decades. Sometimes even just the planning and execution of projects takes decades, so stability matters. That's the key message that we're sharing right now in DC.

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