Volkswagen Group has named Scott Keogh its new Volkswagen Group of America head. He takes on the roles of president and CEO of Volkswagen Group of America and head of the Volkswagen brand for the North American region. The executive was formerly head of Audi America and the Volkswagen brand in the region.
Keogh replaces Hinrich J. Woebcken, who will transition to a senior executive strategy advisor role. Keogh takes on his new roles after his success with Audi in the region. Between 2010 and 2015, Keogh achieved record customer and dealer satisfaction and doubled sales for the premium brand. Before joining Audi in 2006 as its chief marketing officer, he worked for Mercedes-Benz USA for 12 years.
Replacing Keogh as Audi America's chief will be Mark Del Rosso. Currently, Del Rosso leads Bentley in America, a role he earned in 2017. Prior to his role at Bentley, he was also chief operating officer and executive vice president of Audi America, roles he continued to hold while serving at Bentley.
Herbert Diess, CEO of Volkswagen Group, said Woebcken deserved utmost praise for his work as head of VW Group America. He took the position in 2016 following the automaker's diesel scandal, and Diess commended him for his work on rebuilding the VW brand locally.
"Considering the challenging conditions these achievements deserve my dedicated recognition," he said.
The scandal rocked the automaker globally, and although much of the drama has subsided in the United States, German authorities have yet to wrap up their investigation. Thus far, investigations have led to the arrest of several high-profile VW executives. Porsche powertrain boss Jörg Kerner was arrested by German authorities, and Oliver Schmidt, a former VW engineer, was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2017 for his involvement. Former Audi CEO Rupert Stadler was also arrested this past June and VW Group has since terminated the executive.