FLIGHT THROUGH THE ŠKODA WORLD

WHAT IS HAPPENING AT ŠKODA AUTO

UNDER NEW LEADERSHIP

In August, the position of Chairman of the Board of Management at ŠKODA AUTO was taken over by Thomas Schäfer, who replaced Bernhard Maier after almost five years on the job. The German manager has previously worked, among others, for Daimler AG, where one of his responsibilities was the construction of the Mercedes-Benz plant in China. He joined the Czech carmaker from the top of Volkswagen Group South Africa, where he oversaw the successful development of the Group brands in sub-Saharan Africa for the past five years, bringing Volkswagen, Audi and VW Commercial Vehicles to a record market share of 23.5 percent. The construction of additional production plants, the introduction of new ways of cooperation with importers and the development of mobility concepts for Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda and Ghana all contributed to this success. You will find an interview with the new Chairman of the Board of Management in the next issue of ŠKODA Mobil.

FIRST, I WILL BE MOSTLY LISTENING. I WANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW THE ŠKODA AUTO FAMILY WORKS AND WHAT IT THINKS ABOUT – WHAT YOU THINK IS GOING WELL OR WHERE WE COULD IMPROVE OURSELVES.

Thomas Schäfer 

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF MANAGEMENT AT ŠKODA AUTO

You can read the letter from the new Chairman of the Board to the employees on ŠKODA Space.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

TOP CULTURE SUPPORT

The carmaker has extended its cooperation with the Czech Philharmonic and the National Theatre until 2023. “ŠKODA AUTO has long been one of the greatest sponsors of culture in the Czech Republic, and this also applies during this period that is not entirely easy for all of us”, said Bohdan Wojnar, Board Member for HR Management. The carmaker has been cooperating with the Philharmonic since 1993 and started supporting the National Theatre five years later. 

THE YEAR OF SMALL BUSINESSES

ŠKODA AUTO has become the guarantor of a project that aims to support the development of small and medium-sized businesses. As part of the Year of Small Businesses 2020, a number of conferences, seminars and webinars will take place in which the company’s representatives will also take an active part. This year’s main agenda is digitisation and cybersecurity – areas in which ŠKODA relies on an ever-widening range of its online services, extended by a completely redesigned e-shop this year (see The new ŠKODA e-Shop on page 14).

ŠKODA has completed its 3 millionth car in China, where it started production in 2007. This milestone vehicle, a KAROQ, 

rolled off the production line in Ningbo in July.

HOW THEY SEE US 

AUTOBILD.DE (20 July 2020)

OCTAVIA RS TSI 180 kW

Final score 

7/10

WE ARE SURE THAT THE NEW ALL-ROUND ŠKODA SPORTS CAR HAS A PROMISING FUTURE.

excellent first impression

wide range of other drives, including PHEV

very comfortable sports seats

despite being a sports model, the test car’s engine and exhaust didn’t produce very audible sounds (it should be stronger in the marketed version)

NEWS FROM THE GROUP 

A FRUGAL JOURNEY BY SHIP

For the first time in history, a ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) transported newly manufactured cars from Europe to North and Central America. VW Group Logistics took care of the ship’s departure from Emden, Germany. Thanks to its alternative propulsion, the vessel called ‘Siem Confucius’ has significantly lower emissions – up to 25 percent less CO2, 30 percent less nitrogen oxide, 60 percent less particulate matter and 100 percent less sulphur oxide. The 200-metre ship can accommodate 4,800 cars on 13 floors, and an ocean voyage to Mexico takes three weeks.

NEW TIGUAN 

ALSO AS A HYBRID 

The most successful SUV in Europe has undergone a facelift and a number of other improvements. The new look of the car’s front will grab your attention at first glance. Additional innovations can be found mainly under the bonnet and in the cockpit. Customers can also opt for the eHybrid PHEV version or the sporty Tiguan R with all-wheel drive. That one will have a special torque vectoring function to accentuate the car’s dynamics when taking turns. Volkswagen has also equipped the car with a new-generation steering wheel, which, upon request, can be used to control the air conditioning by touch.

ACHIEVEMENTS 

BEST COMMUNICATION DURING THE PANDEMIC

ŠKODA AUTO received a total of five Fénix awards for its content marketing. The expert jury awarded the carmaker first place in the ‘Best Distribution of Corporate Content’ category for its internal communication during the COVID-19 pandemic and also in the category of ‘Employee Newspaper’ for the new look of ŠKODA Mobil. The VTM – Marketing CZ department earned two third places for the ‘Proudly supporting our hockey players on the way to victory’ campaign – in the ‘Best in Auto/Moto’ and ‘Social Media Campaign’ categories. The carmaker also received the special ‘Client of the Year’ award.

IN AUGUST, ŠKODA AUTO MADE THE 13TH MILLION GEARBOX OF THE CURRENT GENERATION. CURRENTLY IT INCLUDES SYSTEMS MQ/SQ 100 AND MQ 200 PRODUCED IN MLADÁ BOLESLAV AND THE AUTOMATIC DQ 200 FROM VRCHLABÍ.

MEASURES AGAINST COVID-19

ŠKODA AUTO reflects the regulations of the Czech government and continuously updates its measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Up-to-date information can always be found on the ŠKODA Space homepage. Further details will be provided by managers and foremen, or you can find them in the ŠKODA Weekly and leaflets and on noticeboards.