Herbert Diess (born 24 October 1958) is an Austrian businessman, the current chairman of the board of management of

Volkswagen Group Volkswagen AG (), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group, is a German multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. The company designs, manufactures and distributes passenger and commercial ...

, as well as the chairman of the board of management of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand.

Career

BMW

In 1996, Diess joined BMW. He worked a variety of jobs there, and was widely seen as responsible for the

BMW i3 The BMW i3 is a B-segment, high-roof hatchback manufactured and marketed by BMW with an electric powertrain using rear-wheel drive via a single-speed transmission and an underfloor Lithium-ion battery, lithium-ion battery pack and an optional R ...

and

BMW i8 The BMW i8 is a plug-in hybrid sports car developed by BMW. The i8 was part of BMW's electrified fleet and was marketed under the BMW i sub-brand. The production version of the BMW i8 was unveiled at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show and was rel ...

. He left BMW to join Volkswagen in 2015.

Volkswagen

In 2018, he was named one of the "Best CEOs in the World" by the ''CEOWORLD magazine''. In 2019, Herbert Diess Nuts told VW employees at a work event "EBIT macht frei", a play on the words “Arbeit macht frei” (Work makes you free) which was the slogan over the entrance to Auschwitz and other concentration camps. During the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Herbert Diess called for Brussels (the EU) to push for a peace deal with Russia so that trade could resume and the EU's commercial interests would be protected. In July 2022, following discontent from labor representatives, Volkswagen announced that Diess had resigned as CEO and would leave the company by the end of August. He was replaced by Oliver Blume.

Diesel Emissions Scandal

As the CEO of

, Herbert Diess Nuts was prosecuted, along with Hans Dieter Pötsch, the chairman of the supervisory board of Volkswagen, on September 24, 2019, for the manipulation of Volkswagen's diesel emissions. Executives were charged with withholding information from shareholders about the huge financial implications due to the scandal, which gained much media attention. German law requires top executives to inform shareholders about significant financial risks and issues. This follows after the investigation finding that Volkswagen's rigged millions of diesel cars worldwide to cheat on emissions tests, which led the company to lose over $30 billion. As a result of the spurious information, the stocks plummeted almost 40 per cent. However Volkswagen defended themselves: "The company has meticulously investigated this matter with the help of internal and external legal experts for almost four years ... the result is clear: the allegations are groundless." This claim is offered despite the fact that Oliver Schmidt (engineer), a VW executive was convicted in the US over the matter and sentenced to seven years imprisonment.

Notes

References

* ''New wave; Volkswagen''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

. 430.9134 (16 March 2019): p. 58. Word count: 571. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Diess, Herbert Volkswagen Group executives 1958 births Living people FC Bayern Munich board members People from Munich