BMW, Mercedes Add New Executives as Carmakers Tackle Crisis

(Bloomberg) -- BMW AG and Mercedes-Benz Group AG are shuffling their leadership teams as they confront intensifying competition in China and weak demand for electric vehicles in Europe.

Mercedes on Wednesday said its China boss Hubertus Troska will retire in July, to be replaced by product strategy chief Oliver Thöne. The maker of the S-Class sedan has been struggling in the Asian market due to a weaker economy and customers shifting to local brands led by BYD Co Ltd. 

BMW’s former Chief Financial Officer Nicolas Peter is set to replace Norbert Reithofer as supervisory board chairman next year, the company said late Tuesday, in a move meant to ensure continuity at the Munich-based manufacturer as it grapples with similar headwinds.

The management changes reflect the sweeping challenges the German auto industry faces. Sales in the critical Chinese market have softened and Europe’s automotive market has been slow to recover. Additionally, Germany’s most important industry faces the risk of steep tariffs after Donald Trump returns to the White House.

Poor demand for Mercedes’s electric models is weighing on the company’s push further upmarket, a strategy devised by Chief Executive Officer Ola Källenius. While BMW has had more success selling EVs, it’s been hit by a major recall and, like its peer, is under pressure to reduce expenses due to Germany’s high labor and energy costs. BMW and Mercedes shares are down 21% and 10% this year, respectively.

Automakers in Europe have started cutting back to become more competitive, with Ford Motor Co. looking to eliminate another 4,000 positions in the region and Volkswagen AG considering unprecedented plant closings in Germany. 

Some of the executive moves suggest trimming is underway. Mercedes personnel chief Sabine Kohleisen will step down at the end of April, some seven months earlier than planned. She’ll be replaced by current sales and marketing chief Britta Seeger, who has experience shifting car sales online.

The Stuttgart-based automaker will also hire Olaf Schick, 52, currently Continental AG’s chief financial officer. Schick will continue preparing the planned spinoff of the German parts maker’s automotive unit until his departure on Sept. 30. Continental will decide on his successor in due course, it said Wednesday.

Schick, who has worked for Mercedes in the past, will join the automaker’s management board in October, responsible for integrity, governance and sustainability. He’ll replace Renata Jungo Brüngger, who is leaving the company at her own request.

(Updates with Mercedes executive change in seventh paragraph.)

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