Photo: Volkswagen
After Herbert Diess said that Volkswagen could lose 30,000 jobs if it did not move fast toward electric cars, that almost cost him his job. According to Reuters, that may not be an issue anymore thanks to a new deal reached between him and board members, especially those representing Volkswagen workers.
The new agreement would make Diess concentrate solely on strategy, leaving the company’s operations in other people’s hands. Ralf Brandstätter would get out of the whole situation as a board member and the guy in charge of the mass-market brand group, which includes Volkswagen, Skoda, and Seat. Those brands were in Diess’ hands until recently.
According to Reuters, after the dispute with union representatives, Diess only remained in charge thanks to the support of the Porsche-Piëch family. It is not clear why the executive accepted this arrangement in which he seems to have lost much of his decision power. He may be waiting for a better job offer or just willing to finish his work at Volkswagen. After planning the strategy to move the company through the electric shift, he probably wants to see it on the other side before leaving.
The bad news is that Diess has been facing trouble with union representatives for quite some time already. Until they see the executive out of Volkswagen, it is unlikely that they will give up. In other words, Diess just managed to buy more time in executing his strategy for Volkswagen, but it is not clear if it will be enough.
Apart from the MEB electric platform, Volkswagen is currently developing the SSP (Scalable Systems Platform). It will be the architecture for the Audi Artemis and the Volkswagen Trinity Project for flat cars focused on impeccable aerodynamics and high energy efficiency. Those cars will just arrive by 2025. They may be Diess’ personal goals: if he can present these vehicles to the world while still in charge of Volkswagen, that may be a significant win for the executive.
According to Reuters, after the dispute with union representatives, Diess only remained in charge thanks to the support of the Porsche-Piëch family. It is not clear why the executive accepted this arrangement in which he seems to have lost much of his decision power. He may be waiting for a better job offer or just willing to finish his work at Volkswagen. After planning the strategy to move the company through the electric shift, he probably wants to see it on the other side before leaving.
The bad news is that Diess has been facing trouble with union representatives for quite some time already. Until they see the executive out of Volkswagen, it is unlikely that they will give up. In other words, Diess just managed to buy more time in executing his strategy for Volkswagen, but it is not clear if it will be enough.
Apart from the MEB electric platform, Volkswagen is currently developing the SSP (Scalable Systems Platform). It will be the architecture for the Audi Artemis and the Volkswagen Trinity Project for flat cars focused on impeccable aerodynamics and high energy efficiency. Those cars will just arrive by 2025. They may be Diess’ personal goals: if he can present these vehicles to the world while still in charge of Volkswagen, that may be a significant win for the executive.
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