Porsche wants to part with two board members

The manufacturer announced this in a mandatory statement. The Supervisory Board has instructed the Chairman of the Supervisory Board to conduct these talks – the announcement entitled “Possible changes in the Executive Board” consists of only one sentence.

The Supervisory Board does not state the reasons behind the decision to part ways with the two top managers. However, there is little doubt that it relates to Porsche’s latest economic developments. 2024 was already seen as a transition year, with model changes for four out of six model series. However, there are reports that Porsche is also likely to miss its own sales and margin targets in the current year – there is also talk of a cost-cutting programme.

In the case of Detlev von Platen, who has been responsible for Marketing and Sales since 2015, the weakness in the important Chinese market may have played a role. Porsche’s sales were 28 per cent below the 2023 figure, with ‘only’ three per cent fewer cars sold worldwide. Nevertheless, other German car manufacturers (including those outside the VW Group) are also affected by a sharp decline in sales in China. However, as Porsche could fall below sales of 300,000 vehicles in 2025, the Supervisory Board could be interested in new impetus in sales.

At first glance, it comes as a surprise that Porsche also wants to part ways with CFO Meschke. The manager has been on the Executive Board since 2009 and Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board since 2015. In this role, Meschke has often deputised for CEO Oliver Blume when the latter was tied up in his role as VW CEO. Meschke was thus seen as the logical successor should Blume relinquish his dual role in Wolfsburg and Stuttgart.

The Blume/Meschke duo had promised margins of 20 per cent at Porsche’s IPO in 2022; according to estimates, Porsche should achieve 14 to 15 per cent in 2024 – still a very good result in the automotive industry, but below its own targets. In addition, the Supervisory Board is likely to have significantly more internal insights than is publicly known.

However, a fault line has also developed externally on a strategically important issue: Meschke had publicly spoken out in favour of advocating a change in the EU’s CO2 targets for new cars from 2035 – a move that Blume has so far at least rejected. In October 2024, Meschke demanded that the ban on combustion engines be dropped. A connection between these statements and the intended termination of the contract has, of course, not been confirmed. However, according to Automobilwoche, Porsche Supervisory Board member Wolfgang Porsche is said to be “fully behind Blume” – and wants to ‘’create clear conditions in Zuffenhausen‘’ by parting ways with Meschke, in case a new start in the Executive Board is imminent without Blume. As a potential rival with his own ambitions and approaches, Meschke will now probably be taken out of the game prematurely.

porsche.com, automobilwoche.de (speculation on the background; in German)