Porsche CEO Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking and Porsche CFO Holger P. Härter have resigned effective immediately and left Porsche.
17 years ago, Porsche was almost bankrupt and nobody actually thought that Porsche is going to survive and stay independent. Then, Dr. Wiedeking was appointed CEO and things started to change at Porsche.
Dr. Wiedeking introduced the Boxster and kept the 911 alive. He also started to lower production cost by learning from japanese car maker Toyota.
The press and the public loved Dr. Wiedeking: he was blunt, open minded and more important, he refused taking financial aid from the german state. This made him very popular with the public.
Although Porsche didn't always earn money with their cars per se and although some critical voices inside and outside Porsche questioned the financial games of Dr. Wiedeking and his CFO Härter, Porsche was the lovechild of stock markets worldwide for some while. The brand name Porsche was not only popular, it was standing for good quality and new technology. It was also standing for exclusivity and luxury.
The introduction of the Cayenne was late but necessary, the Cayman was pure genius from a marketing point of view but apparently the marketing department underestimated the intelligence of their customers. Instead of being successful as an entry-level 911 for people under 35, the Cayman actually became the new "entry-level" 911 for the 40-50 year olds.
Despite the extended model line, Porsche was making money with the financial "games" CFO Härter inititated and they worked out well for some while, adding some serious money to Porsche's bank accounts.
The Porsche family was happy, they earned billions of Euros over the past 17 years during Dr. Wiedeking's leadership and the stock value of Porsche was at new heights. Unfortunately there was one family member who wasn't too happy, maybe because he didn't like Dr. Wiedeking's popularity or maybe because he was actually somebody with a lot of experience in the car production business and forsaw that a car company can't survive on a longterm view without actually earning money with...cars.
It seems that it was Mr. Piech who opposed Dr. Wiedeking's and CFO Härter's plan to take over "big brother" Volkswagen. Not only because Mr. Piech was actually involved with Volkswagen but because Mr. Piech was afraid that it is a very risky thing to do for Porsche, especially since Piech is a member of the Porsche family and owns a pretty large chunk of Porsche.
The other Porsche family members apparently had more trust in Dr. Wiedeking, so they decided to go on with the Volkswagen takeover, despite the warnings from Mr. Piech. Maybe Mr. Piech was even playing a double game, hoping for a successful takeover and at the same time, just in case, be prepared ("I told you so...") if the takeover doesn't succeed. I can't imagine that Dr. Wiedeking and Mr. Härter went on with their VW takeover attempt without the consent of Mr. Piech and without his advice, even if Mr. Piech somehow opposed the takeover attempt in public.
When the economy worldwide went downhill, Dr. Wiedeking and Mr. Härter realized pretty soon that a VW takeover is not only difficult but practically impossible.
This time, Mr. Piech had his moment. Remember? "I told you so...". The Porsche family had no other choice than to make the right decision for Porsche.
Volkswagen is going to integrate Porsche as the 10th brand, at the same time it seems that production and model line decisions will stay with Porsche. This seems to be the official story. Truth is: as soon as Dr. Wiedeking walked out, Porsche will not be the old Porsche we know anymore. Mr. Macht, the new CEO, learned a lot from Dr. Wiedeking and he also shares a good part of Dr. Wiedeking's philososphy for Porsche, no doubt about it. Unfortunately there is not only the Porsche family in his back anymore but also the Volkswagen company, including Mr. Piech. It isn't going to be easy for Mr. Macht and it is not very clear if Mr. Macht is going to be the "final" CEO or just somebody who had to replace Dr. Wiedeking on short notice.
Dr. Wiedeking was good for Porsche, no doubt about it. The Porsche family owes him a lot and they know it. This may be the reason why they let Dr. Wiedeking choose his own fate, by allowing him to resign. Luckily, it wasn't Mr. Piech who had to take the lead in this matter, otherwise things may have gotten ugly in the process.
Dr. Wiedeking gets 50 Million EUR for his good-bye and half of this sum goes to a social network for Porsche employees. This is a good thing and it proves that Dr. Wiedeking wasn't just CEO of Porsche but he also left his heart with Porsche, he WAS Porsche.
Dr. Wiedeking is gone and although many Porsche employees are still hoping for a miraculous return, we doubt that this is going to happen. Too many people at Volkswagen opposed Dr. Wiedeking, incl. Mr. Piech and Mr. Winterkorn.
The future of Porsche is a little bit uncertain right now. Although Porsche claims that Volkswagen is not going to get involved with production or future model development, I doubt that Volkswagen will accept a fully independent Porsche.
The game is over, Volkswagen has won. This may be a good thing for some but it is surely a bad thing for Porsche employees. Sooner or later, Porsche has to be trimmed down here and there, there is no need for a second Audi in the Volkswagen company.
Farewell, Dr. Wiedeking...Porsche owes you a lot.
Mr. "High Tech" Dr. Wiedeking
Holger P. Härter
--
RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor 997 Turbo, Cayenne Turbo S, BMW M3 Cab DKG, Mini Cooper S JCW
Re: CEO Dr. Wiedeking and CFO Härter have left Porsche
