In the past few months, Oliver Blume's status as CEO of two publicly listed companies, Volkswagen Group and Porsche, has been controversial in the German automotive industry. Just last week, Porsche suddenly announced that its new CEO Michael Leiters would take office next year. This successor had not appeared on the candidate list before and was almost unknown.

奥利弗·布鲁姆（Oliver Blume）

The power game behind the transition of old and new management rights involving a large automobile group is inevitable. Both Volkswagen and Porsche are in a difficult period of declining performance and increasing pressure for transformation. The sudden replacement of those in power reveals the way power operates within the Volkswagen Group.

Bloom's Pressure: Must Give Up a CEO

Since taking over the Volkswagen Group from Herbert Diess in September 2022, Bloom has continued to hold a dual position, managing both Volkswagen and Porsche, two companies with vastly different business models and strategic priorities. This position was quite unique and surprised the outside world at the time. From today's perspective, this setup is undoubtedly a failure. Almost at the same time that Bloom took over Volkswagen, Porsche AG went public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange with a valuation of 75 billion euros, making it one of the largest IPOs in Europe in nearly a decade. However, three years have passed, and Porsche's stock price has dropped from 82.5 euros per share to 45 euros per share, causing its market value to shrink by nearly 45% and even falling out of the DAX index at one point. Porsche SE, which is controlled by Porsche and the Piech family and integrates its shares in Volkswagen and Porsche, is still listed on the DAX index, and has lost more than half of its value to date. In addition, due to the sharp decline in demand for ultra luxury cars in China and the rise in US car tariffs, Porsche has repeatedly lowered its profit expectations, with the supercar manufacturer even expecting a profit margin of no more than 2% in 2025. But in the past decade, Porsche, as the "profit cow" of Volkswagen Group, has always been known for its high profitability, with a long-term operating sales return rate of over 15%.

As for Volkswagen, according to data from the German Stock Exchange (ETR), the stock price of Volkswagen Group's common stock (VOW3) fell by more than 50% over the three-year period from October 2022 to October 2025. The preferred stock (VOW) experienced a decline of over 60% during the same period. Especially in the third quarter of 2024, Volkswagen's operating profit plummeted by 42% year-on-year, hitting a three-year low. This is influenced by various factors such as intensified competition and declining sales in the Chinese market, the lack of profitability in electric vehicle models, and the overall sluggishness of the European market. In contrast, despite facing the same challenges of electrification transformation and market environment, the stock price of Mercedes Benz Group has only fallen by 6.5% in these three years, and BMW's stock price has even risen by about 4%. Industry conventions often lead to personnel disputes due to poor performance. In the first half of this year, as the performance of both Volkswagen and Porsche came under pressure, opposition to Bloom's dual position grew louder. Volkswagen's preferred shareholder, Deka Investment, was the first to raise serious questions about Bloom's dual position at the shareholders' meeting in May. Investors can no longer tolerate Bloom leading two listed companies simultaneously. In fact, the German media "S ü ddeutsche Zeitung" pointed out that the shareholders of both companies have long been dissatisfied with Bloom's leadership of both Volkswagen and Porsche. How can a large automotive group with 650000 employees be led through part-time leadership?

Some analysts believe that if only Porsche and the Pi ë ch family make decisions, Bloom can still keep two jobs, but Volkswagen clearly holds opposing views. To manage both car companies simultaneously, Bloom works seven days a week. Opponents argue that maintaining such high-intensity work for a long time will make it difficult to achieve optimal management. Moreover, dual roles will inevitably encounter conflicts of interest, and decisions that benefit Porsche may not necessarily bring benefits to the entire Volkswagen Group. In September of this year, with Volkswagen's plan to close two German factories, the conflict between Bloom and the union also became apparent. Daniela Cavallo, a member of IG Metall (the German metal industry union) and chairman of Volkswagen's labor management committee, has expressed clear opposition to her position: the entire German automotive industry is facing a severe test, and Bloom "cannot be a part-time boss in Wolfsburg and spend the rest of his time at Porsche". She requested Bloom to resign as CEO of Porsche in order to focus on addressing the transformation challenges of the Volkswagen Group and safeguarding the long-term interests of workers. Porsche and the Pi ë ch family also realized that Bloom must focus on Volkswagen in the future.

丹妮拉·卡瓦洛（Daniela Cavallo）

On October 17th, Porsche announced that Bloom will officially step down as CEO on January 1st, 2026. However, Bloom quickly received a contract extension from Volkswagen and will continue to serve as CEO of the Volkswagen Group until the end of 2030.

Reproduce history

The controversy over Bloom's dual position has lasted for nearly half a year, and both Volkswagen and Porsche have suffered greatly. Even Bloom himself appeared exhausted. In May of this year, he said, "I can definitely be replaced, just like anyone else." According to German media reports, Porsche had already decided to let Bloom focus on Volkswagen's affairs, but Bloom's resignation announcement was not officially issued until October, and the announcement of this decision was very sudden, reminiscent of Diess' resignation three years ago. On July 22, 2022, Diess also posted a positive post on social media LinkedIn, thanking employees for their hard work in the first half of the year and expressing confidence in the second half. He was inspecting a Volkswagen factory in the United States at that time. But a few hours later, after a meeting of Volkswagen's supervisory board in the evening local time in Germany, it was suddenly announced that Diess would step down as CEO at the end of August and be succeeded by then Porsche CEO Oliver Blume. This news is very sudden for both Dis himself and the outside world. Today, three years later, the end of Bloom's dual position resume has surprised the core leadership circles of Volkswagen and Porsche. According to a report by S ü ddeutsche Zeitung, it was initially reported on Friday morning that Bloom would leave Porsche and focus entirely on Volkswagen. Subsequently, the supervisory boards of Porsche and Volkswagen held an extraordinary meeting. Porsche and the Pi ë ch family control Volkswagen and Porsche through their holding companies, and the supervisory board is seen as their center of power. It is believed that Porsche released the announcement confirming Bloom's imminent resignation, driven by early reports. Porsche also announced that it is considering former McLaren CEO Michael Leites as a potential successor to Bloom. This' possible personnel change 'indicates that Porsche lacked a broader final decision at the time of the announcement, and the various stakeholders of Volkswagen and Porsche had not yet reached an agreement.

迈克尔·莱特斯（Michael Leiters）

On the one hand, the equity structure of Volkswagen Group is the result of a game of interests. As the largest shareholder of Volkswagen Group, Porsche Holding holds over 50% of the voting rights of Volkswagen Group. Although Volkswagen Group owns 75% of Porsche's equity, the Volkswagen Group itself is controlled by companies controlled by the Porsche family, and this two-way equity structure is the core of the relationship between Volkswagen and Porsche. On the other hand, the Volkswagen Group also involves a power struggle between the board of directors and the union. Previously, Diess was suddenly dismissed, partly due to his radical electrification transformation strategy causing complete opposition to union interests. Undoubtedly, the push for Bloom to resign as CEO of Porsche included pressure from the IG Metall union on Volkswagen's management. The suddenness of personnel decisions exposes the confrontational power relations within the Volkswagen Group. This kind of confrontation runs through the development process of Volkswagen Group and will continue to exist.

Becoming the CEO of Porsche

cWhy was Bloom's resignation deadlocked for months? How did Leitz become the CEO of Porsche? The complexity of this process once again highlights the competition among different stakeholders of the public. According to German media reports, there are at least three key candidates for the position of CEO at Porsche. Porsche and the Pi ë ch family, as well as the government of Lower Saxony, the second largest shareholder of Volkswagen Group with veto power on the board, and labor unions, all have their own views on the qualifications of their successors. Therefore, the process of finding a successor to Porsche took a long time. According to internal sources within Volkswagen Group, Bloom himself tends to have Stefan Weckbach as his successor. Weikebach joined Porsche in 2008 and led the development of Porsche's first pure electric vehicle, the Taycan series, playing a key role in the company's electrification transformation. In 2023, he was transferred to the headquarters of Volkswagen Group by Bloom and appointed as the CSO (Chief Strategy Officer) of Volkswagen Group, responsible for key affairs such as group strategy, group product strategy, and general secretariat, reporting directly to Bloom. It can be said that Weckbach was a person promoted by Bloom along the way. He was once a potential candidate in the eyes of the media, but his close relationship with Bloom became a reason for those in power to oppose Weckbach. The S ü ddeutsche Zeitung pointed out that the Porsche supervisory board is concerned that he and Bloom may form a power center, and may even confront the elderly Porsche and the head of the Piech family, Wolfgang Porsche.

沃尔夫冈·保时捷（图中躺卧者）

In addition, Weckbach is not an engineer, but a corporate economist. For Porsche and Pi ë ch families, who value traditional engines, if the leader only understands numbers but not car parts, it may be difficult to ensure the continuity of the brand's genes and the stable execution of corporate strategies, which will make it difficult to gain the trust of the family. Within a large corporation, trust and networking have always been the key to the survival of senior managers. There are also views that choosing one of Bloom's "own people" as Porsche CEO after Bloom faced questioning from the union and shareholders about his dual role may give the impression that the management is still controlled by Bloom and his trusted team, which may once again raise doubts about Porsche's independence from the outside world. In contrast, Leytes' professional experience covers Porsche, Ferrari, and McLaren, with management experience in multiple supercar brands. He graduated from RWTH Aachen University in Germany with a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering and a PhD in Engineering. In the early stages of his career, Leytes worked at Porsche for over a decade, holding multiple important positions. He was responsible for the development of Porsche's best-selling models Cayenne and Macan series, and played a key role in the development of Cayenne hybrid models. In 2014, he left Porsche and joined Ferrari and McLaren. Prior to May of this year, he served as the CEO of McLaren.

The Porsche Supervisory Board believes that Leytes is a leader from outside the company with a different background, and the identity promoted internally by Weckbach may be difficult to break through the existing strategy. An external candidate will have a more transformative image, and his joining is seen as a signal that Porsche is seeking to achieve change and breakthrough in the high-end market. More importantly, he will not enter the board of directors of Volkswagen Group like Bloom did, which will help strengthen the image of Porsche as an independent listed company, while balancing the interests of the Porsche Pi ë ch family and the union, and avoiding the dispersion of executive energy due to internal power struggles. Another key figure driving Wright to take office was Wendelin Wiedeking.

文德林·维德金（Wendelin Wiedeking）

He is the most legendary but controversial CEO in Porsche's history, leading the company for 16 years from 1993 to 2009. He once saved Porsche from the brink of bankruptcy, but it was also the direct cause of Porsche's acquisition by Volkswagen. Leitz joined Porsche in 2000 and served as the executive assistant to this legendary CEO for three years. He encountered huge resistance when developing Porsche's first four door model Cayenne for Wiedeking, but later achieved great success. Later, he took over responsibility for all SUV models. Since then, Leicester has been known for being Vidkin's "cleaner" and daring to handle tricky affairs. Leits' early experiences made him familiar with the complex interactions between Stuttgart and Wolfsburg. Under Vidkin, he not only had to deal with Porsche's internal problems, but also deal with external adversity, which is remarkably similar to today: as early as the 2000s, Japanese car manufacturers surpassed Germans through hybrid engine technology. Leits thought of introducing this hybrid drive system in the Cayenne at the time and planned to collaborate with Volkswagen on its development - but this delay lasted for a long time. At a time when various parties in the Volkswagen Group were struggling with candidates, Vidkin's recommendation ultimately sent Leytes to the position of CEO of Porsche. This is just the beginning, the challenges left by Volkswagen and Porsche for Bloom and Leicester respectively will continue, and with the continued turbulence in the automotive industry, the power game story belonging to Wolfsburg is still being written.