• Christiane Engel is the new director of the Volkswagen Poznań plant in Września
• For the first time in the history of the Company a woman was appointed as the director of the plant.

New management at the Września plant: From 1 October 2018, Christiane Engel, former head of the organization of work and industrial engineering in Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, will be the new director of the plant in Września. Christiane Engel will replace Ralf Nitzschke, who is going to lead the strategic project called “Cooperations for Volkswagen Poznań.”

The plant management in Września

Christiane Engel has a degree in production engineering (faculty: work science) and began her career in 1992 in Volkswagen in Saxony in the field of industrial engineering. From that time she worked in a variety of roles in different plants of the Company. In 2001 she joined Auto5000 GmbH and took over the management of the organization of the work and the factory. In 2009 she took over the management of industrial engineering at the Chattanooga plant (USA). Since 2012 Christiane Engel has been working for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, where she held the position of the manager of work organization and industrial engineering.      

The hitherto director of the plant, Ralf Nitzschke, has a degree in engineering (technology of processing) and began his professional career in 1986 in Volkswagen Passenger Cars as a clerk in the laboratory. Since 1993 he held further managerial functions in Germany and abroad, i.a. in VW de Mexico (Puebla), Audi (Neckarsulm), VW Slovakia (Bratislava), VW India (Pune) and Volkswagen Poznań. In addition he supported the production in factories in China, Spain and Canada. Since 2015 Nitzschke has been the director of the plant in Września (Production of VW Crafter, 3.400 employees) and previously he largely contributed to the successful construction of the new plant.  

Comments:

Board Member of the HR staff, Professor Edig: For the first time a woman was appointed as the director of the plant.

Prof. Thomas Edig, Board Member of the HR staff at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, emphasized, that Christiane Engel as the first woman in the history of Volkswagen AG will act as the director of the plant: “It is going to be clearly visible that we focus on the diversity and know-how of women and that we support their involvement, particularly in technical areas. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is also and above all an attractive employer for qualified women.” 

Thanks for the current work

Jens Ocksen, President of Volkswagen Poznań: “With the appointment of Mrs Christiane Engel as the new director, Volkswagen Poznań can boast a second woman next to Jolanta Musielak, Member of the Management Board for HR, who holds a high management position in the Company. Thus, the percentage of women in the executive management increased and is now at 28%.

I would like to thank Mr. Nitzschke for the good cooperation in construction of the plant in Września. After the very successful opening of the factory and the beginning of the production of Crafter under the direction of Ralf Nitzschke, the staff in Września plant once again receives an experienced person who is very well prepared for the future challenges.”