BMW Group has extended the contract with CEO Oliver Zipse at his supervisory board meeting ahead of schedule by another two years until summer 2026. What will happen after that remains to be seen, but there is already speculation about potential successors.

Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of BMW AG, said: “Oliver Zipse has very successfully steered the company in recent years through an extremely volatile environment.”

“In a phase of global crises and profound transformation, the BMW Group has achieved reliably robust results under his leadership and sustainably strengthened its leading position in global competition. With the Neue Klasse, the BMW Group is on track to expand this position further,” he added.

The personnel also applaud the decision: Martin Kimmich, Chairman of the General Works Council of BMW AG, reacted: “The good cooperation between the Board of Management and the Works Council will be continued with the reappointment of Oliver Zipse. I am convinced we will continue to take constructive decisions jointly, and I look forward to the future.”

BMW is deviating from its usual line on one crucial issue: the carmaker has an internal age limit of 60 years for board members. After 60, people usually receive only one-year contracts. Oliver Zipse will turn 60 on February 7th, 2024. If his contract is extended to the summer of 2026, he will be 62.

Leading the ‘New Class’ into production

Zipse will thus continue to be responsible for the biggest project of the coming years at the head of BMW – the launch of the new electric cars of the ‘New Class’ (‘Neue Klasse’) from 2025 onward.

BMW gave a preview of the first model of the upcoming platform at the IAA Mobility in early September with the Vision Neue Klasse study. With 800-volt technology and the switch to round cells, the New Class brings some technical changes and intends to set digitalization and circular economy standards.

“With the New Class, we will bring mobility for the next decade to the road as early as 2025 and lead BMW into a new era,” Zipse said at the premiere on September 4th. There is also the primary task of managing the investments in development, purchasing, and production from current business.

The money for doing this comes from the ‘old’ industry: BMW is earning more than ever with its current multi-energy strategy without a clear end to combustion engines.

New head of sales

At the same meeting, the Supervisory Board appointed Jochen Goller to the Board of Management of BMW AG. He will succeed Pieter Nota and take over responsibility for the division Customer, Brands, and Sales on November 1st, 2023.

“Pieter Nota took over the division in 2018 and played a key role in significantly accelerating sales of all-electric models in recent years and systematically digitalizing the customer interface. In addition, he has sharpened the BMW Group’s brand portfolio and further developed the international sales organization toward a sustainable and customer-centric sales model,” says the official press release.

“The Supervisory Board would like to thank Pieter Nota for his great commitment and, in particular, the important impulses he has brought to the sales organization with his extensive experience outside the automotive industry,” said Reithofer. “With Jochen Goller, we appoint an internationally experienced sales manager to the Board of Management and a proven China expert who knows the BMW Group’s largest market like no other.”

Jochen Goller has been with the BMW Group since 1999 and spent more than ten years with the company in the UK and China in various cross-brand functions. Since 2018, he has successfully managed the activities in the China region. Goller was previously also responsible for the Mini brand.

CEO succession war has already started

According to the German newspaper Handelsblatt, BMW is already preparing for the time after Zipse. The “planning games regarding the successor” have already begun. The article mentions Chief Production Officer Milan Nedeljkovic, Chief Purchasing Officer Joachim Post, and Chief Human Resources Officer Ilka Horstmeier. No names of external candidates have been thrown in the ring yet.

If the BMW supervisory board stays true to its line, Nedeljkovic would have the best chances. Zipse, his predecessor Harald Krüger, and the latter’s predecessor Norbert Reithofer were responsible for production before being appointed CEO. However, the time could also be ripe for the first woman at the head of BMW in 2026, and Ilka Hortsmeier has the highest chance.