WOLFSBURG (dpa-AFX) - The dispute in Ingolstadt at the premium subsidiary Audi obviously smoldered for a long time - but now VW CEO Oliver Blume probably did not want to watch any longer, Audi CEO Markus Duesmann must go. Blume has promised the owners, investors and employees of the Wolfsburg car giant a clear plan and its swift implementation. He can hardly be accused of a lack of decisiveness - an overview of the course he has set since taking office in September 2022.

Personnel decisions

On his very first day in his new role, the Group's management got an impression that Blume does not waste time. Without further ado, the Group's Executive Board was trimmed, with Sales Director Hildegard Wortmann and Purchasing Manager Murat Aksel suffering the consequences. A few months later, Aksel was replaced by Dirk Große-Loheide.

A few weeks ago, Blume took action at the software subsidiary Cariad. He brought Bentley production expert Peter Bosch to head the problem child, and Dirk Hilgenberg had to make way. Duesmann is now the most important post Blume has filled to date. The new head of Audi, Gernot Dollner, is considered his confidant.

Software

Cariad is to ensure that Volkswagen keeps pace with the software-centric car of the future. Blume's predecessor Herbert Diess, however, never quite got a handle on implementing the ambitious plans, ultimately losing the top job over it.

Last fall, Blume straightened out the schedules for programming finished versions; now, a few weeks ago, project management was also turned upside down along with the leadership. VW is also opening up more to partners.

For a long time, problems at Cariad had delayed the start-up of important products, including the electric Porsche Macan and the Audi Q6 e-tron. Both models are to be delivered to customers for the first time next year with slimmed-down software versions than originally planned. Blume wants to avoid further delays at all costs.

In addition, the company is cooperating in the field of robot cars with the software company Mobileye from the Intel Group, and in China with the local company Horizon Robotics. A billion-dollar investment in the company Argo AI together with U.S. partner Ford did not stop Blume from pulling the plug on the start-up earlier because there was little chance of success without a lot of additional money.

Porsche-Borsengang

The partial sale of Porsche, the Stuttgart-based sports car subsidiary also headed by Blume, may seem like a simple financial deal that brought billions into the VW Group's coffers to cover research and development expenses. But it also resulted in a major shift in the Group's power structure: The owning families Porsche and Piëch now once again have direct access to the sports car maker with the family name through their blocking minority of just over a quarter of Porsche AG ordinary shares.

In tears, family patriarch Wolfgang Porsche had had to relinquish control of Porsche AG to the Volkswagen Group after a failed takeover attempt in 2009 - a construct with strong influence from the state of Lower Saxony and the powerful works council. That the Borsengang succeeded was therefore a major concern for the families. Despite adverse circumstances, Blume pulled it off shortly after taking office; measured by market valuation, it became the biggest Borsengang ever in Europe.

China strategy

In April, VW announced plans to accelerate its decision-making and development processes in China. To this end, one billion euros is to be invested in a new development, innovation and procurement center for fully connected electric cars.

VW has been struggling to cope with cheap competition in electric cars in the giant Chinese market for several years. Earlier this year, the VW Passenger Cars brand lost the market leadership it had held for decades to electric carmaker BYD. Particularly when it comes to digital connectivity, Volkswagen is not delivering what Chinese customers want in the interior. Blume wants to get closer to the pulse of customers again with the products in China. China is Wolfsburg's most important single market.

What Blume still has to do

Despite the decisions he has already made, Blume still has a lot of work to do. First and foremost is the low-yield core brand VW Passenger Cars, which continues to have problems generating a decent return even after several rounds of cost-cutting and regrouping. For this reason, billions in earnings improvements are to be achieved in the coming years.

The core brand plays a central role for the entire Group. Blume wants to ensure significantly more joint production with other brands at the plants in order to become more profitable. In addition, savings are to be made in sales to dealers.

Last week, CFO Arno Antlitz admitted that this would not be possible without a reduction in labor costs. Initially, the only thing being discussed is that positions that become vacant will often not be filled. But the details of cost-cutting projects are often tricky. At the moment, works council head Daniela Cavallo is still sympathetic to Blume. The details of the savings program should be in place by October.

Blume has also set himself the goal of reaching out more to the capital market in order to raise the Group's stock value. However, VW preferred shares are currently worth a good 122 euros, around 20 euros less than when he took office. Porsche AG shareholders have a good one-third more in their portfolio since Borsen's departure. What's more, investors are still very skeptical as to whether Blume's dual position as CEO is in their best interest because of possible conflicts of interest./men/DP/zb