O Michael Mauer ο νέος επικεφαλής σχεδίασης του VW Group

To VW Group ανακοίνωσε τους νέους επικεφαλής των τμημάτων σχεδιασμού, έρευνας και ανάπτυξης αλλά και παραγωγής. Την θέση του Walter De Silva ως επικεφαλής του τμήματος σχεδιασμού του Volkswagen Group την αναλαμβάνει ο Michael Mauer. Ο Mauer που θα διατηρήσει και την θέση του ως αρχισχεδιαστής της Porsche, ξεκίνησε να εργάζεται

το 1986 για λογαριασμό της Mercedes-Benz όπου αποχώρησε το 2000. Ήταν υπεύθυνος για τον σχεδιασμό των A-Class, SLK, SL, όπως και για τον σχεδιασμό των μοντέλων της Smart. Το 2000 πήγε στην Saab, ενώ το 2003 πέρασε στην GM Ευρώπης. Από το 2004 εργάζεται για λογαριασμό της Porsche με τις 2007 Porsche Cayenne, Panamera και 918 Spyder να είναι δικές του δημιουργίες.

Ο Dr. Ulrich Eichhorn αναλαμβάνει τον ρόλο του επικεφαλής του τμήματος έρευνας και ανάπτυξης του VW Group, με τον Fred Kappler να γίνεται ο νέος επικεφαλής πωλήσεων του Γερμανικού ομίλου. Επικεφαλής παραγωγής γίνεται ο Wolfram Thomas, ενώ ο Ralf-Gerhard Willner αναλαμβάνει τα ηνία του τμήματος προϊόντικής στρατηγικής. Η Porsche Automobil Holding SE, ανακοίνωσε πως διόρισε τον Manfred Döss ως τον αρμόδιο για τα νομικά θέματα της εταιρίας.

Δελτίο Τύπου

Volkswagen Group continues structural and staff realignment

Functions in CEO’s area of responsibility reorganizedMüller: “Faster decision-making and more efficient action”

The Volkswagen Group is becoming more streamlined and speeding up its internal decision-making process. To that end, functions in the area of responsibility headed by CEO Matthias Müller are being restructured. The number of top managers reporting direct to the CEO has been almost halved, and new appointments to several posts will take effect in the first quarter of 2016.

The CEO of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft, Matthias Müller, said: “These structural changes speed up the decision-making process, reduce complexity and increase efficiency. The Group Board of Management can focus more closely than previously on overarching issues of the future, safeguard cross-brand synergies and further develop overall strategy.” Müller underscored: “The team in the CEO’s area of responsibility is almost complete, with excellent colleagues from within and outside the Group taking up the new posts. We are focusing in particular on the technological changes that impact the future of mobility – from electrification to the digital transformation. Our goal is to play a decisive role in shaping the transformation of the automobile. Our new lean structure will enable us to develop the considerable potential of our Company, its brands and employees to great effect. We will see faster decision-making and more efficient action.”

Under these structural changes, the following appointments take effect in the CEO’s area of responsibility during the first quarter of 2016:

Dr. Ulrich Eichhorn (54) will lead Group Research and Development. Eichhorn holds a PhD in mechanical engineering. Having started his career at Ford, he was Head of Volkswagen Group Research from 2000 to 2003. He was appointed Board Member for Engineering at Bentley in 2003 before taking over as Managing Director of the German Association of the Automotive Industry in 2012.

Fred Kappler (57) will assume responsibility for Group Sales. He studied business science and joined Volkswagen as a trainee in 1982. He held various responsibilities in the export section of Sales at Volkswagen AG from 1983. He was given responsibility for sales in North-West Europe at the Volkswagen brand from 1995. He moved to China as First Vice President and CFO of FAW-Volkswagen in 1997. He became Head of Sales Germany for the Volkswagen brand in 2000, Board Member for Sales at Škoda Auto in 2004, Head of Sales Volkswagen Genuine Parts in 2009, and Head of Group Services in 2011.

Michael Mauer (53) will lead Group Design – in addition to his present function at Porsche. Mauer studied vehicle design and began his career at Mercedes-Benz in 1986, holding various functions until 2000, including design responsibility for the A-Class, SLK and SL models as well as Smart design. He moved to Saab as Executive Director Design in 2000 and was also given responsibility for Advanced Design at General Motors Europe in 2003. He has been Head of the Design Department at Porsche AG since 2004 and was also given responsibility for styling the 2007 Porsche Cayenne, the Panamera and the 918 Spyder.

Wolfram Thomas (59) takes charge of Group Production. Thomas holds an engineering degree and has been with the Volkswagen Group for 35 years. Following various management functions at Volkswagen, SEAT and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Thomas became manager of Volkswagen’s Kassel plant in 1998. He was appointed Executive Vice-President of Production at SEAT in 2002, becoming Deputy President of the brand in 2009, and was subsequently named Group Chief Officer for the Environment, Energy and New Business Areas in 2012.

Ralf-Gerhard Willner (54) will lead Group Product and Modular Toolkit Strategy. Willner is a trained toolmaker and holds a degree in automotive engineering. He began his career at Audi in Ingolstadt in 1987. Following various management functions at Audi and Volkswagen, he was named Head of Development Vehicle Concepts at Audi in Ingolstadt in 2003, assuming responsibility for the same task at Volkswagen Passenger Cars in 2007 before becoming Technical Director at Italdesign Giugiaro in 2010 and returning to Audi AG as Head of Vehicle Concepts in 2013.3

Dr. Manfred Döss appointed executive board member responsible for legal affairs and compliance

Stuttgart, 17 December 2015. The supervisory board of Porsche Automobil Holding SE, Stuttgart (“Porsche SE”), has appointed Dr. Manfred Döss (57) to the company’s executive board as of 1 January 2016, responsible for legal affairs and compliance. As general representative of the company Döss has already been in charge of the legal department of Porsche SE since May 2013. Prior to that he worked as general counsel for RWE AG in Essen and for MG Technologies AG (now: GEA AG) in Frankfurt, for eight years in each case.

Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, chairman of the supervisory board of Porsche SE, said: “In Dr. Manfred Döss we have appointed a well-versed lawyer to the executive board who judiciously and relentlessly defends Porsche SE in pending criminal proceedings and actions for damages.” Under his lead, Porsche SE has since 2013 achieved several important legal stage victories in German courts, and fended off all pending claims for damages in the USA.

In addition to Manfred Döss, the other members of Porsche SE’s executive board are Hans Dieter Pötsch (chairman of the executive board and chief financial officer), Matthias Müller (strategy and corporate development) and Philipp von Hagen (investment management).