Consulting veteran Thomas Sedran heads VW Strategy
Volkswagen has hired former Opel boss Thomas Sedran, also a former AlixPartners and Roland Berger partner, as Head of Group Strategy. Sedran, who started in his new role with effect from November 1, reports to Matthias Müller, Volkswagen’s CEO, who succeeded Martin Winterkorn just two months ago.
Thomas Sedran (51) joins Volkswagen from car manufacturer General Motors (GM), the American parent of Opel. In 2012, when he started his employment at the firm, he was named head of Strategy & Operations for Opel, and later on he served as interim CEO, playing a key role in developing the ‘Drive Opel 2022’ strategy designed to return the company to profitability. Over the past two and a half years Sedran was President and Managing Director of Chevrolet and Cadillac Europe. Prior to working in the automotive industry, Sedran spent more nearly twenty years in the consulting industry.
After receiving a Master's degree in Business Administration from the University of Hohenheim and a Ph.D. from Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Sedran started his career in 1994 with Roland Berger, Germany’s largest home-grown management consultancy. During his 12 year stint with the consultancy, he grew to become partner, and in his last role headed the firm’s global Competence Automotive Center. In July 2006 Sedran left Roland Berger to join rival AlixPartners, where he led the automotive practice globally and was involved with several large strategic transformations in the industry, including the reorganisation of Opel / Vauxhall in Europe.
In his new role at Volkswagen, Sedran will oversee all aspects of strategy development, planning, innovation and new concepts to drive growth, as well as work together with the Board on dealing with the strategic and operational repercussions of the emissions scandal. He reports directly to Matthias Müller.