The former Porsche boss Wendelin Wiedeking had once tried to take over the much larger Volkswagen group from Stuttgart. It couldn’t be that “the tail wags the dog,” Wolfsburg managers countered in tandem with Lower Saxony’s politicians and brought the plans down. In the end, Porsche went completely to VW. The story is now being corrected under Oliver Blume. Since the 55-year-old manager took over the management of VW in addition to his position as Porsche boss in September, he has given the Stuttgart sports car manufacturer unimagined power.
As if on an assembly line, Blume is currently filling key positions in the VW Group with confidants, many of whom can look back on long careers at Porsche. Technically, too, the Stuttgart-based company should become a pioneer, on which the entire VW empire is aligned. Blume has the backing of Wolfgang Porsche. In the summer of 2009, after losing the takeover battle, the major shareholder had to admit with a breaking voice to the Stuttgart workforce that the company that bears his name was losing its independence. Now he’s taking back control with Blume. The powerful shareholder family is thus creating new conflicts of interest and risks, especially for independent shareholders.