* Timotheus Hoettges takes over as CFO March 1
* Company posted strong results Friday
By Nicola Leske
FRANKFURT, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Deutsche Telekom's Timotheus Hoettges may not be everyone's first choice to steer the German telecoms group's finances however he can be sure of one thing -- Chief Executive Rene Obermann's trust and backing.
Hoettges takes over as chief financial officer (CFO) on March 1, following the company's solid results Friday, after shocking investors with two profit warnings within two months at the turn of 2006-2007.
The bald and bespectacled Hoettges, 46, and Obermann, 45, became close friends when Hoettges handled finance during Obermann's time as head of the company's wireless unit T-Mobile.
They both grew up in small towns in Germany's most populous state, North-Rhine Westphalia, and neither strayed far from home. Both ended up in nearby Bonn, where Deutsche Telekom is based.
"Those two are very tight. They bought property together and built homes next to each other on that plot of land," said a person who has worked closely with both men.
That proximity makes some people uneasy.
Hoettges, responsible for the company's fixed-line business for just over two years, took a tough stance on plans to cut jobs at the unit in 2007. This triggered a major strike and raised concerns among union representatives that he will not be friendly to labour as CFO.
Outgoing CFO Karl-Gerhard Eick, who will head struggling retail company Arcandor from March, negotiated with unions as Deutsche Telekom lacked a head of personnel at the time. His negotiating skills earned him the respect of union officials.
Hoettges -- born in Solingen, dubbed city of blades for its knives output -- is said to be straightforward, traditional and hierarchical, unlike Eick, known to be suave and diplomatic.
"Hoettges believes upper management deserves utmost respect," said a manager at the company, who declined to be named. "He's the quintessential German who will never have a different company car other than a Mercedes."
One of the challenges he will face is to improve the stock price, which has been hovering around or below 10 euros for over a year below the issue price of 14.32 euros for private investors at the company's public listing in November 1996.
Many speak of his energy to take on challenges and his ability to absorb knowledge. The tall and lean Hoettges, who regularly jogs with Obermann, is also known to treat his staff well.
"What is admirable is his sense of purpose... if he is anything he is super dedicated," said a person who worked on a project with Hoettges and declined to be named.
That trait will be useful and may help assuage any shareholder concerns that Hoettges could have trouble finding his feet as a CFO in the capital markets.
There was a fateful day last March that Hoettges -- and his critics -- will hardly forget. Deutsche Telekom lost around 8.3 billion euros ($10.55 billion) in market value after an outlook on its fixed-line business that Hoettges gave at an investor conference backfired.
Hoettges, who has been at Deutsche Telekom since September 2000, is aware of the scepticism over his appointment. He takes pains to point out that he has worked as a finance head before and as a controller, albeit never at a listed company.
"I really am a numbers guy," Hoettges likes to say.
However it's not just a question of numbers.
The job needs political skills too. The German government still owns around a third of the company and has a seat on the supervisory board.
Hoettges has to alleviate fears that he is nothing more than Obermann's trusted crony who will support him unconditionally.
People who have worked closely with him in the past two years are confident Hoettges will prevail.
"He combines expertise and emotionality and that characterises him as a human being, too," said Frank Domagalla, one of his closest associates. "There will be tears in my eyes when he leaves for his new job."
($1=.7865 Euro)
(Editing by Sharon Lindores)