When Gernot Döllner arrived in Ingolstadt in September final 12 months to start out his new position as CEO and chairman of Audi, he most likely discovered fairly the to-do record in a bulging in-tray. 

Shortly earlier than Döllner’s appointment, Volkswagen Group chair Oliver Blume described Audi as “lagging [behind] the competition”. That’s why the job had turn into vacant within the first place: former boss Markus Duesmann was sacked, stories counsel, due to quite a few delays to the flagship Q6 E-tron.

But getting the Q6 E-tron undertaking again on monitor was only one problem dealing with Döllner. Audi was gearing up for the largest wave of product launches in its historical past, whereas dealing with an elevated problem from new Chinese rivals, attempting to maintain tempo with BMW and Mercedes-Benz, dealing with a slowing marketplace for electrical autos and coping with ever-changing rules.

Whereas Duesmann had jumped throughout from BMW to supervise Audi in 2020, Döllner wasn’t a flashy rent. The 55-year-old has been on the Volkswagen Group since 1993, with the majority of his profession spent at Porsche, the place he labored with Blume.

Among different roles, he was product supervisor for the 918 Spyder and the Panamera mannequin collection. Since 2021, he has been VW’s group technique boss – a key if considerably back-room position.

That appears to suit Döllner’s fashion – and explains why he doesn’t appear in any respect fazed by the challenges forward of him at Audi. In truth, his manner is a good match for the model: it’s not about being showy; it’s about being environment friendly, thought of and decisive.

Since he began at Audi six months in the past, Döllner and his board have spent their time laying out a brand new technique for the corporate, which has been referred to as the Audi Agenda. See, informed you he wasn’t flashy.

The agenda is meant to assist sort out the important thing points affecting the agency. “We’re currently managing the biggest model initiative in Audi’s history,” he says, “while at the same time driving forward a fundamental transformation.”