There are big changes coming at the Volkswagen Group. After four years at the helm, VW announced Friday that CEO Herbert Diess (R) is set to step down, with Porsche chairman Oliver Blume (L) appointed to take over one of the world's largest automakers. Blume will take on this new role, while maintaining his position at Porsche, on September 1.
Diess hasn't had an easy tenure at Volkswagen, the company still recovering from its diesel-emissions cheating scandal, and investing heavily in electrification. As Reuters points out, Diess' most recent trouble was a dispute with the company's powerful labor unions over possible job cuts. There was uncertainty if he would remain CEO, but with the backing of the Porsche-Piech family, the majority shareholders of the VW Group, Diess kept his job.
In contrast, Blume's seven years running Porsche have been a success. The automaker has continued to be one of the most profitable in the industry, and it's had a hit with its first electric car, the Taycan. VW Group is eyeing an IPO for Porsche this year, and it's unclear how this change at the top affects those plans.
Diess joined the VW Group to head up the Volkswagen Brand in 2015 after a stint as R&D lead for BMW. Blume, by contrast, is a VW Group lifer, starting at Audi in the mid-Nineties and working for the Audi, SEAT, and VW brands before joining Porsche in 2013.
"Herbert Diess played a key role in advancing the transformation of the company," said VW Supervisory Board chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch in a statement. "The Group and its brands are viable for the future; its innovative capabilities and earning power are strengthened. Mr. Diess impressively demonstrated the speed at which and consistency with which he was able to carry out far-reaching transformation processes. Not only did he steer the company through extremely turbulent waters, but he also implemented a fundamentally new strategy."
A car enthusiast since childhood, Chris Perkins served as Road & Track's engineering nerd and Porsche apologist.
