Automotive News Europe

2010 Eurostars: Champions at overcoming challenges
The 2010 Eurostars stand out because they have succeeded despite their companies facing the worst recession in decades. Quick action by CEO Norbert Reithofer kept BMW Group in the black without sacrificing on the company’s commitment to developing and launching greener technology. Audi CEO Rupert Stadler’s tireless work has the VW Group premium brand on track to achieve record global sales and big earnings in 2010.
2010 EUROSTAR – GROUP CEO

Catch a rising star
Who will be the CEO of Volkswagen in 2020? Which person will be making a difference at BMW or Renault in 15 years? Who will be the Eurostars of tomorrow? Those are tough questions to answer, but it is likely that those people already are on the rise in the auto industry. The inaugural ANE Rising Stars program will identify Europe’s top up-and-coming talent. ANE will reveal its first group of Rising Stars next year. The winners will be honored at a pre-Congress gala dinner on June 29, 2011. That is the evening before the 2011 ANE Congress, which will be held in Cologne, Germany. Norbert Reithofer, BMW CEO

Ford of Europe design chief Martin Smith has given the brand a consistent, innovative look that has made models such as the Ka and Fiesta winners with customers. The other ten Eurostars, who were chosen by the editors of Automotive News Europe in partnership with T-Systems and Siemens PLM, have reached equally impressive results in the face of massive challenges. All the winners will be honored at an awards dinner on September 29 in Paris.

Reithofer floors the throttle to keep BMW ahead
Norbert Reithofer has no intention of relinquishing BMW Group’s title as the world’s top-selling premium automaker to Audi – or anyone else. Reithofer has vowed to leave no stone unturned to keep the group profitable and atop the sales charts where it has been since passing rival Dailmler in 2005. As the global economic crisis hit hard in late 2008, the BMW CEO moved aggressively to cut production and costs to keep the group profitable. In a particularly tough move, he pulled BMW out of Formula One racing last year and redirected the team budget to the automaker’s green Efficient Dynamics program, which aims to slash fleetwide CO2 emissions by another 25 percent by 2020. But Reithofer, 54, hasn’t been focused on MORE 2010 EUROSTARS
2010 EUROSTAR – CAR DIVISION CEO Rupert Stadler, Audi CEO Page 32 2010 EUROSTAR – DESIGN Martin Smith, Ford of Europe Executive Director of Design Page 32 2010 EUROSTAR – SUPPLIER CEO Yann Delabriere, Faurecia CEO Page 32 2010 EUROSTAR – SUPERLUXURY Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, Ferrari Chairman Page 34 2010 EUROSTAR – ENTREPRENEUR Victor Muller, Saab Chairman/Spyker CEO Page 34 2010 EUROSTAR – ADVERTISING Ian Robertson, BMW Board Member for Sales and Marketing Page 34 2010 EUROSTAR – PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT Ulrich Hackenberg, VW brand Board Member for Development Page 36 2010 EUROSTAR – PURCHASING EXECUTIVE Mark Adams, Toyota Europe Vice President of Purchasing, R&D/Manufacturing Page 36 2010 EUROSTAR – PROJECT LEADER FOR INDIVIDUAL CAR Alain Joseph, Head of Citroen Synthese Client Page 36 2010 EUROSTAR – CFO Hans Dieter Poetsch, VW Group CFO Page 38 2010 EUROSTAR – SALES & MARKETING EXECUTIVE Allan Rushforth, Hyundai Europe Vice President Page 38 2010 EUROSTAR – SUPPLIER DIVISION CEO Alex Ismail, Honeywell Transportation Systems CEO Page 38

cost-cutting exclusively. The automaker is investing heavily in a new front-wheel-drive architecture; on a line of new, smaller modular engines; and on electric vehicles. Reithofer also has given the go-ahead to build a second plant in China. Reithofer’s cost-cutting actions at the end of 2008 paid off. BMW scraped out a net profit of 210 million euros for 2009, off 36 percent from 2008, while Daimler posted a net loss of 2.64 billion euros. With demand growing for its cars, in July the company raised its 2010 sales and earnings forecast. BMW predicts sales this year will rise about 10 percent to more than 1.4 million cars and SUVs, while the operating margin in the automotive unit will be more than 5 percent.

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Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010

Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010 - 30

Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010