Pierre Boutin – President & CEO of Volkswagen Group Ireland and former President & CEO of Volkswagen Group Canada – joins host Gregg Garrett to discuss the difference between building ecosystems and building organizations. Pierre shares his “Top 3”: Ted Charlton, who is equal parts boat-builder and sailor; Cyril Chatelet, a journey mate in the auto-to-mobility path; and Pierre’s wife, Elena, who reminds him to stop and cherish transformational moments. And you have to hear what he says about demonstrating empathy.

SHOW HIGHLIGHTS

During this episode:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:00) Connecting ecosystems

(05:20) Meet Pierre

The “Top Three”:

(09:56) Ted Charlton: an early colleague who is equal parts boat-builder and sailor

(14:35) Cyril Chatelet: a journey mate in the auto-to-mobility path

(19:54) Elena: Pierre’s wife, who reminds him to stop and cherish transformational moments

Other Points of Interest:

(24:17) Growth at Volkswagen Group Canada

(31:19) Sustainable transformation of mobility

(40:43) European market movement and finding balance

You Have to Hear This:

(46:39) Importance of demonstrating empathy 

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Pierre Boutin: LinkedIn

Gregg Garrett: LinkedIn | Twitter | About

CGS Advisors: Website | LinkedIn | Twitter

ABOUT PIERRE BOUTIN

As the President and CEO of Volkswagen Group Ireland and previously Canada, Pierre has been leading the business turnaround, transformation, and sustainable growth of one of the largest automakers. With over 30 years of international experience in the automotive industry, he has a robust understanding of complex supply chain organizations, cross-cultural team management, and extensive partnerships with retail distributors. He is passionate about developing and implementing effective strategies that leverage his expertise in global market expansion and customer experience.

Pierre is a Canadian citizen who is fluent in both English and French. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree with a specialization in Marketing from Université Laval. He has extensive international experience as Head of Volkswagen France leading the organization to its best performance in the past decade, and prior to that as Head of Volkswagen Russia where he led the brand through its most severe crisis securing viability and future investments. Most recently, he has achieved an important turnaround of the Canadian operations achieving best profits and market share in its history. He has contributed to secure the largest automotive investment ever in Canada with the battery cell manufacturing in St. Thomas to support the growth of the Volkswagen Group business in North America.

Prior to joining Volkswagen, Pierre had Domestic and International leadership roles with Ford and Nissan including Managing Director of Central & Eastern Europe and of Nissan West Europe SAS.

Pierre is married and has two children.