Report: Porsche CEO to Head Volkswagen Brand

Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess will name Porsche CEO Oliver Blume head of the Volkswagen brand, according to a report by Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

The promotion is said to be part of a major senior management reshuffle that will see Diess retain control of overall Volkswagen Group operations but hand day-to-day management of the Volkswagen brand to Blume, who has headed Porsche since 2015.

Volkswagen refused to comment on the report to Wards. However, insiders at VW headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, indicate the move to promote Blume centers on an internal program aimed at ironing out production issues with the new eighth-generation Golf and the company’s first dedicated electric model, the ID.3.

Both cars reportedly have been plagued by software issues which have delayed production and led to belated market introductions.

Blume already serves on the Volkswagen Group board of management as head of production.

Bernhard Maier, CEO of VW’s Skoda brand, is rumored to be in line to replace Blume at Porsche, where he previously served as head of marketing.

The changes follow a reshuffle last week in which VW’s chief technology officer, Matthias Rabe, moved to Bentley to become its engineering boss. He replaced Werner Tietz, who moved to VW’s SEAT brand to head R&D.