- Volker Schwarz announced as new Chief Information Officer at GKN Automotive
- Previous positions include IT leadership roles in automotive, energy and defence industries
- Volker joins GKN Automotive’s Executive Team
London, UK, 2 January, 2024 – GKN Automotive, the global leader in drive systems, has appointed Volker Schwarz as its new Chief Information Officer (CIO), with immediate effect.
Reporting directly to GKN Automotive’s Chief Executive Officer, Markus Bannert, Schwarz will join the company’s Executive Team, responsible for driving its global IT strategy. The appointment reflects a new phase in the brand’s commitment to IT investment and development.
Schwarz joins with more than 20 years’ experience in global organisations, having held various technology leadership positions in the automotive, energy and defence industries.
His previous role was CIO at Rheinmetall AG, a leading international automotive and defence technology group, where he was responsible for developing the company’s first global IT strategy. He led the creation of a centrally managed IT group function and a major IT in-sourcing programme. Prior to that, Schwarz was CIO at Diethelm Keller Group for three years, and spent 12 years at Baker Hughes where he held a range of leadership roles in both Germany and the US.
He holds a degree in data engineering and electronics and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
Markus Bannert, Chief Executive Officer at GKN Automotive, comments: "As a leader in technology, we know that developing and investing in our own technology infrastructure is crucial to our operations and ensuring we build an efficient and secure business. Volker is joining our business at an important and exciting time, and with an extensive international background, he has the right expertise and vision to help lead us into the next chapter of our technology journey.”
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Notes to Editors
ABOUT GKN AUTOMOTIVE
GKN Automotive is a world-leading global automotive technology company at the forefront of innovation. Its origins date back to 1759 and for the last 70 years it has been putting key technologies into series production. It is the trusted partner for most of the world’s automotive companies, specialising in developing, building, and supplying market-leading drive systems and advanced ePowertrain technologies.
It is the global leader in sideshafts, with eight out of ten of the world’s best-selling cars outside China using its sideshaft technology. GKN Automotive’s first eDrive system was fitted to a production car over 20 years ago; today, over two million electrified vehicles worldwide are powered by this technology.
GKN Automotive is part of Dowlais Group plc, a specialist engineering group focused on the automotive sector.
For further information, please contact:
GKN Automotive
Corrie Raine
External Communications Manager