Pity loses another boss. Only after a year and a half – PRAVDA.sk

Another unexpected change is taking place at the top of Škoda. Thomas Schäfer is leaving. Mieri to Volkswagen. The name of his successor is unknown.

The current chairman of the Škoda board of directors, Thomas Schäfer, is leaving his post. At the same time, he sat in the chair of the boss only in August 2020. This means that he did not remain in the position for even a year and a half. His arrival was already accompanied by controversy, as he replaced Bernhard Maier, probably the most successful head of the Czech carmaker in recent years. During its leadership, since 2015, Škoda has launched the Kodiaq, Karoq, Kamiq, Scala, fourth-generation Octavia models and developed the new Enyaq iV electric car.

Under Maier, Škoda also achieved record production. In 2019, it delivered approximately 1.24 million vehicles to customers. Of these, a record 910,000 were produced in Czech plants. In the same year, Škoda’s turnover rose to 19.8 billion euros, ie by a considerable 15%, and its operating profit to 1.7 billion euros. All this in the difficult times of investing in electromobility and digitization. Unlike Schäfer, Maier was an ardent supporter of the Czech brand’s interests in the Volkswagen Group and did not agree with its move towards less solvent customers.

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They were all the more surprised by Maier’s departure in Mladá Boleslav and perhaps even more surprised by Schäfer, who came to the Czech brand as director of the Volkswagen South Africa office, covering the entire sub-Saharan region. Schäfer was more in favor of Wolfsburg’s efforts to turn Škoda into a brand that would not compete so hard with Volkswagen. And that’s probably appreciated at headquarters, because Schäfer is doing better. He will be the head of Volkswagen from August. He will replace the current Ralf Brandstätter, who will take over Volkswagen’s activities in China from August. The name of Schäfer’s successor in Škoda is unknown.

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The Group’s Supervisory Board explained the changes by the need to streamline the company’s operations so that it is prepared for the challenges of the coming years, which is primarily car electrification and digitization. Group CEO Herbert Diess, who has recently been under pressure for disagreements with the group’s influential race board for his overly aggressive transition to electric cars, and who has been in charge of China, remains in office. However, he will lose some of his powers, including in favor of Brandstätter, who will also become a member of the group’s board of directors.

In addition, Hildegard Wortmann will join the board of the German automotive group in February, taking over responsibility for sales from Diessa. Wortmann is now Head of Sales in Audi’s luxury vehicle division. Hauke ​​Stars will also become a member of the Board of Directors from February, and she will be responsible for information technology. According to the group, the importance of this sector became fully apparent, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.