VW of America leadership change—CEO Scott Keogh departs to lead Scout EV brand

Volkswagen Group of America CEO Scott Keogh will leave the brand and take over as the first CEO of the German automaker's nascent Scout electric vehicle brand, the automaker said Tuesday. Pablo Di Si, 52, who has headed VW's South American region, becomes CEO of Volkswagen Group of America and CEO of Volkswagen North American Region. Keogh, 53, has been CEO of VW of America since November 2018, following his tenure as president of Audi of America. When he was appointed, he was the first American to lead the brand's U.S. operations in 25 years. Keogh was Audi of America's chief marketing officer for six years before taking the president role. VW will also soon be led by a new marketing leader. The company is looking to replace Kimberley Gardiner, senior VP of marketing at VW of America, who left that role last week after two weeks on the job. VW's lead U.S. agency is Johannes Leonardo, which now must endure another round of executive changes at VW. Keogh was known to be an ally of the agency. "Scott Keogh and Pablo Di Si both have played key roles in turning around the businesses in their respective regions, North America and South America," Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess said in a written statement. "In their future positions, they will be pivotal in helping the Group seize the historic market opportunities in the U.S., taking our growth strategy in the region to the next level." Keogh will turn over his responsibilities Sept. 1 to take over Scout, VW said. Di Si's successor in Volkswagen South America will be announced in the near future, the company said. Keogh had given some private hints that he may be in line to lead Scout's resurrection since it was announced by the German automaker in May. Keogh on Tuesday said Scout is, right now, "a company of one person," namely him, and that establishing such a startup is something that appeals to him. "It was a simple, straightforward decision: Either, one, stay in my existing role and continue to operate and do it accordingly and keep rocking and rolling, or take the chance of a lifetime to do a startup company," Keogh told reporters during a quick conference call Tuesday from a board meeting in Chattanooga. "I think if you're an American and a businessman and person of humanity, in my mind, it was no choice: to do a startup, to be entrepreneurial, and to revive an iconic American brand." Keogh took no questions about Scout's future operations, but said the brand would show its first concepts in 2023 and that it would take advantage of the savings from being part of the VW Group. He did not discuss how Scout would ultimately be distributed in the U.S., which has been a bone of contention with VW dealers since the May announcement. "It's certainly something I want to do. And so obviously, what do you have to do? You have to bring this brand to life. You have to bring the team on board. And unfortunately I have to bring a product to the marketplace that people love," Keogh said. Keogh said Scout being "independent" would give the brand "the flexibility to seek strategic partners" and the "flexibility to potentially go to the capital markets, and do all of the things that can come over time." —Ad Age contributed to this report.

VW of America leadership change—CEO Scott Keogh departs to lead Scout EV brand

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