Roman Zitzelsberger was born in 1966 in Ettlingen, Germany. He began an apprenticeship as machine fitter at the former Daimler-Benz plant in Gaggenau in 1984. Subsequently, he worked at the plant as measuring technician and machine operator and obtained an advanced technical degree in mechanical engineering.

During his apprenticeship, he was already active at IG Metall as a shop steward and youth representative and in 1989 became active as trade union secretary in Gaggenau. In 1996, he was elected as Second Authorized Representative and in 2003 as First Authorized Representative of IG Metall in Gaggenau. In parallel with his job, Roman Zitzelsberger completed courses in business administration at the distance-learning university, FernUniversität Hagen. In 2011, he graduated from the Malik Management Center in St. Gallen with a Master of Management degree.

Roman Zitzelsberger has been active as District Head of IG Metall Baden-Württemberg from 2013 to 2024. In the collective bargaining rounds in 2015 and 2018, he was responsible for negotiating the pilot agreements for the metal and electrical industry nationwide.

Roman Zitzelsberger is a member of the following other legally mandatory supervisory boards and comparable supervisory bodies:

• Mercedes-Benz Group AG (listed)
• ZF Friedrichshafen AG (not listed)
• Daimler Truck AG (group mandate, not listed)

In addition to his activities as employee representative, he is a member of various economic and state political bodies.