Christian Weingärtner has been appointed Vice President Europe Business Transformation at Ford, where he will oversee the company’s strategic changes in the region. Christoph Herr will step into Weingärtner’s previous role as Managing Director for Ford Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, Ford-Werke GmbH announced on Monday.
Weingärtner, 42, previously served as Managing Director for Marketing and Sales as well as Managing Director for the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). He left the management board in November 2024 but continued his operational duties until this latest promotion. In his new role, Weingärtner will report to John Lawler, Vice Chair and Chief Financial Officer of Ford Motor Company. His career includes substantial experience in Ford’s European operations, including his tenure as Director of Strategy, Autonomous Vehicles & Mobility.
Herr, who succeeds Weingärtner, was previously Director of the Ford Service Organisation, responsible for service and parts operations in the DACH region. Before joining Ford, Herr led the Digital Solutions division at MAN Truck & Bus, where he focused on digitizing sales and aftersales processes and advancing digital fleet management. “We look forward to Christoph Herr driving innovation and growth in the region,” Ford stated in a press release.
The leadership changes come amid Ford’s ongoing restructuring in Europe, driven by challenges in its transition to electric vehicles. The Cologne plant has been exclusively producing EVs, such as the Explorer and Capri, since 2024. However, reduced working hours were introduced for 2,000 of the plant’s 13,000 employees in November, alongside plans to cut 4,000 jobs in Europe by 2027, including 2,900 in Cologne.
Ford’s reorganization also followed the departure of Martin Sander, former Managing Director Germany, to Volkswagen. The management team at Ford-Werke GmbH was slimmed down to four executives, with only Dave Johnston (Finance) and Marcus Wasserberg (Labour Director) remaining in charge since November.