The Opel Supervisory Board today named Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann (51)
chairman of the Management Board of Adam Opel AG, effective March 1,
2013. In addition, GM appointed Dr. Neumann president of GM Europe and
GM vice president. He will become a member of GM's Executive Committee
and is expected to play a key role in the global leadership of GM.
Steve Girsky, chairman of the Opel Supervisory Board, said: “Dr.
Neumann has in-depth knowledge of the automotive industry. He has a
proven track record in growing business in a profitable way as well as
in turnarounds. He will add significant strength to the Management Board
and will be instrumental in leading the company on a turnaround path
that will be counted among Europe's most successful.”
“Opel/Vauxhall is a key to General Motors’ global success,” said Dan
Akerson, GM chairman and CEO. “This move will ensure that we have the
best possible leadership in place as we continue driving toward
profitability and growth in Europe.”
Said Dr. Neumann: “I am excited to lead a company with such a rich
German heritage and strong product portfolio. I'm aware that this will
be a challenging job, but I'm convinced that together with my leadership
team and employees, we will turn around the company."
Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann in the new Opel Cascada Convertible |
Dr. Neumann joins Opel/Vauxhall from Volkswagen AG, where he held the
positions of CEO and vice president of Volkswagen Group China, and was
located in Beijing from September 2010 to August 2012. Previously, Dr.
Neumann held various other management positions within the Volkswagen
Group, which he joined in 1999 as head of Group Research and director of
Electronic Strategy. In December 2009, Dr. Neumann was appointed the
Volkswagen Group’s chief officer for Electric Traction.
From 2004 to 2009, Dr. Neumann was a member of the Executive Board,
Automotive Systems Division, at German supplier Continental AG. In
addition, Dr. Neumann was chairman of the Executive Board of Continental
AG from August 2008 to September 2009.
Dr. Neumann studied electrical engineering at the University of
Dortmund and University of Duisburg, where he was awarded his doctorate
degree. He started his career at the Fraunhofer Society as a research
engineer and worked at Motorola Semiconductor as well as an engineer and
director of strategy for the automotive industry.