Volkswagen Group, one of the world’s largest automakers with nearly 9 million vehicles sold last year, ratcheted up an already ambitious strategy in 2021. The target: to transform the company from a maker of cars, commercial vans, sedans and even motorcycles into a global mobility business that will in lead in EV sales, software and future technology like autonomous driving by the end of the decade.
It’s a massive undertaking for a company that has 10 brands, including Audi, Bentley, Cupra, Ducati, Lamborghini, Porsche, Seat, Skoda, Volkswagen and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and employs more than 662,000 people globally.
And the person at the helm of this endeavor — Dr. Herbert Diess — will be joining TC Sessions: Mobility 2022 for an online portion of the event that gives everyone, regardless of their location, a chance to tune in.
TC Sessions: Mobility 2022 takes place live in San Mateo, California, on May 18 and May 19. On May 20, Diess will join as special guest to our online analyst commentary to talk about everything, from the company’s pursuits in EVs and autonomous vehicle technology, to his thoughts on the newer competitors like Tesla and how it has affected VW Group, to plans for the future.
Considering Diess’ experience, expertise and ambitions, the interview promises to cover considerable ground and offer insights into where a company that generated nearly €250 billion last year is headed — and how it plans to get there.
After holding a number of management positions at Robert Bosch GmbH and BMW, both in Germany and abroad, Diess was appointed CEO of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand from 2015 until 2020. In 2018, Diess was became CEO of Volkswagen Group and was assigned responsibility for the China Board of Management Division since 2019. Diess took over in January 2022 responsibility for the automotive software unit CARIAD within the Volkswagen Group Board of Management.
Diess’ years as CEO haven’t been easy, battling through the pandemic and related global semiconductor shortage, labor disputes, the rising prominence of Tesla as a competitor and power struggles within the board.
Diess has survived all of it and now is focused on VW Group’s transformation, even as new challenges such as the war in Ukraine crop up. Join us as we talk about how Diess is trying to turn VW Group into a nimble and tech-centric automaker that leads in electrification, digital connectivity and autonomous driving, while still offering affordable mobility, hitting lofty sales targets and company-wide carbon neutrality goals.
TC Sessions: Mobility 2022 breaks through the hype and goes beyond the headlines to discover how merging technology and transportation will affect a broad swath of industries, cities and the people who work and live in them. Buy your pass today, before prices increase, and you’ll save $200!
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