Opel's New Management Team

As hinted earlier today, German carmaker Opel is now ready to take on the challenges of the future with a new management team, led by Nick Reilly as chief executive officer. Immediately below Reilly, Mark James, until now CFO for GM Daewoo, has become Opel's CFO.

In additon Rita Forst, former Executive Director, Vehicle Systems & Integration in Rüsselsheim is the new responsible for Engineering while Hans Demant has been appointed GM Vice President, Global Intellectual Property Rights.

The rest of the board comprises Reinald Hoben (Manufacturing), Holger Kimmes (HR) and Tom McMillen (Purchasing). GM will be represented within Opel by the following: Stephen Girsky, Senior Advisor to GM CEO Ed Whitacre, Michael P. Millikin, GM Vice President & General Counsel, Bill Parfitt, Chairman, GM United Kingdom and Karl-Friedrich Stracke, GM Vice President Global Engineering.

"Today’s appointments represent another important building block for Opel’s successful future”, Opel Supervisory Board Chairman Walter Borst said. “The new leadership team has the full support of the Supervisory Board. We are looking forward to a good and constructive cooperation with Nick Reilly and his team as our common objective is to move forward the Opel brand.”

”I am very pleased that the Management Board is in place now,“ Nick Reilly commenting on today’s decisions. “The new Opel/Vauxhall leadership team will address our tasks quickly and with plenty of energy. With our Insignia, the Astra, the new Meriva and several other upcoming new products, we in particular will be on the offensive and will want to increase our market share in Europe. Our recent product and sales successes are motivating and reassuring at the same time.“