Come November, Timo Resch, vice president of customer, brand and sales at BMW M, will join Porsche Cars North America as its president and CEO. Resch replaces Kjell Gruner, who is now Chief Commercial Officer and President of Business Growth at Rivian Automotive.
“I am excited to join Rivian at this important time in its success story,” Gruner said. “Rivian has built an exceptional brand with two incredible consumer vehicles, the R1T and R1S, as well as category-defining commercial vans, at its core. As we build a strong brand, I look forward to chart paths into new markets, build new partnerships and customer experiences.”
Until Resch’s arrival, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Thierry Kartochian and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Joe Lawrence are leading the company on an interim basis.
A return to his roots
For Resch, 48, the move is a homecoming of sorts, as he started his career in Zuffenhausen in 1995 as a student with Porsche before taking various roles at Porsche AG and Porsche Cars North America, before overseeing the North American Product Planning and Market Research unit.
Resch then held multiple management positions at Audi AG and most recently at BMW Group, where he led global sales and marketing for BMW Motorrad since 2017 after working in BMW’s automotive and motorcycle divisions since 2014. He was Head of Product Management for the BMW X5, BMW X6 and BMW X7 models as well as the BMW 7 Series and 8 Series.
“We are delighted to welcome Timo Resch back to Porsche and to one of our most important regions,” said Detlev von Platen, member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche AG. “He is already very well acquainted with Porsche and the U.S. market. With the expertise that he brings from his previous positions, he will further strengthen the Porsche brand presence in North America and provide important impetus for future development.”
Whom Resch replaces
Resch will have big shoes to fill, as former Porsche Cars North America CEO Kjell Gruner, who oversaw record growth at Porsche Cars North America in sales, as well as the growth of the Porsche Center network across the U.S. as the automaker expanded to nearly 200 independently owned and operated dealers. Prior to that, Gruner had served as Vice President, Marketing at Porsche AG from 2010 through 2020.
“We thank Kjell Gruner for his excellent work at Porsche,” said von Platen. “He has played an important role in the global development of the Porsche brand in recent years. Both personally and professionally, we wish him all the best.”
Prior to his stint at Porsche, Gruner spent more than six years at Daimler, where he was the Director of Strategy for Mercedes-Benz Cars.
