Published

VW Restructuring May Eliminate Board Sales Chief

Volkswagen Group's sweeping reorganization plan may leave Christian Klingler, its top marketing executive, without a job, sources tell Reuters.
#marketing

Share

Volkswagen Group's sweeping reorganization plan may leave Christian Klingler, its top marketing executive, without a job, sources tell Reuters.

The sources note that Klingler's role as the board member overseeing sales and marketing is likely to be reassigned to lower-level executives as the group strives to give regional managers and VW's brands more power to make their own decisions.

Klingler has been notably unsuccessful in reviving the VW brand in the U.S., where sales fell 7% in 2013,10% last year and 4% through the first five months of this year. Reuters' sources say he has lost the shield from criticism in the past by his strong ties with now-ousted Chairman Ferdinand Piech.

Klingler heads auto retailer Porsche Holding Salzburg, a company founded by Piech's mother. He also is married to one of Piech's relatives.

RELATED CONTENT

Gardner Business Media - Strategic Business Solutions