The crisis that has been rumbling for several weeks within the world’s largest automaker has erupted. The supervisory board of Volkswagen announced Monday evening that Herbert Diess, the boss of the group, renounces the presidency of the eponymous brand. From 1 July, Ralf Brandstätter, its operational director, will take command of the German manufacturer’s standard.
“Herbert Diess thus obtains more free space for his functions as head of the group,” Volkswagen said in a press release. “The objective is a greater concentration on the respective tasks at the head of the group and the brand in this phase of transformation of the automotive industry,” concludes the manufacturer. “Who runs the Volkswagen brand leads the group, it is a very hard blow for Herbert Diess”, nevertheless decides Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, director of the Center Automotive Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen.