ID.4

Make
Volkswagen
Segment
SUV

The Volkswagen Group is making two significant changes in its procurement department to combat the ongoing supply chain issues. Two new Board of Management members have been assigned to the vehicle and truck departments, and both men have experience in crisis management. VW has been hit with the same semiconductor shortage and the sudden loss of crucial parts from Ukraine that others have had to contend with, but that's no excuse - VW wants to be ahead of the pack.

Murat Aksel, who used to be the Board member responsible for Procurement at Volkswagen Passenger Cars, has been moved horizontally across to trucks. Aksel joins the Board of Management of MAN Truck & Bus in charge of procurement.

He has been the Chief Purchasing Officer for Volkswagen passenger cars (across the entire group) since January 2021, which means he's well versed in crisis management by now having weathered a large chunk of the ongoing semiconductor chip shortage.

Dirk Grosse-Loheide will fill Aksel's old role and become a member of the Extended Executive Committee. By joining the extended committee, Grosse-Loheide is also responsible for various functions, including procurement and production, quality, sales, design, and development.

Meanwhile, Aksel will stabilize the Group's supply chains in the heavy vehicle department. According to Volkswagen, supply remains especially limited in this segment. This news comes as MAN Truck & Bus ramps up production as demand for heavy vehicles has once again stabilized following severe declines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

These are the latest high-profile moves by the Volkswagen Group's CEO, Oliver Blume. Blume only assumed his role a few months ago after Herbert Diess was ousted in a move that shook the automotive industry.

"In Dirk Grosse-Loheide, we have won another procurement expert with international experience for this strategic key function in the brand and in the Group," said Blume. "He had previously demonstrated his ability to manage Procurement effectively at Audi, the Volkswagen brand, and at Group level. His task will be to further stabilize the supply chains in close collaboration with suppliers to allow us to deliver products to our customers as quickly as possible."

The Volkswagen Group has had several ups and downs this year. Its software department caused several delays across the group, but Porsche's IPO is one of the most successful in European finance history.

Volkswagen's ID.4 continues to be a smash hit in the EV segment, and the brand is slowly starting to find its feet under the watchful eye of Oliver Blume.