Wolfgang Bernhard is a member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG. He is the former President and COO of Chrysler.

Early life

Bernhard was born Wolfgang Ayerle in September 3, 1960 in Böhen

Böhen

Böhen is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. He grew up as one of nine children and later took his mother's maiden name. He earned a masters degree in electrical engineering and economics from Technical University of Darmstadt in 1986, and MBA from Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School is the business school of Columbia University in Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1916 to provide business training and professional preparation for undergraduate and graduate Columbia University students...

 in 1988, and a doctorate in economics from Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in 1990.

Career

After obtaining his doctorate degree, Bernhard joined McKinsey & Company

McKinsey & Company

McKinsey & Company, Inc. is a global management consulting firm that focuses on solving issues of concern to senior management. McKinsey serves as an adviser to many businesses, governments, and institutions...

 in 1990 as a management consultant. In this capacity, he was assigned to Mercedes-Benz. In 1992, he joined Mercedes-Benz AG. Bernhard became CEO of Mercedes-AMG in 1999. Following the merger of Daimler-Benz

Daimler-Benz

Daimler-Benz AG was a German manufacturer of automobiles, motor vehicles, and internal combustion engines; founded in 1926. An Agreement of Mutual Interest - which was valid until year 2000 - was signed on 1 May 1924 between Karl Benz's Benz & Cie., and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, which had...

 and Chrysler

Chrysler

Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....

 in 1998, Bernhard was appointed President and COO of the Chrysler division in 2000. He continued in the position until he was slated to become the head of the Mercedes-Benz group in May 2004, but was passed over for the job just a day before his official switch. Bernhard subsequently resigned. Bernhard then served as the CEO of the Volkswagen

Volkswagen

Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...

 brand for Volkswagen AG from 2005 to 2007. He was ousted from this position in January 2007 by Ferdinand Piech

Ferdinand Piëch

Ferdinand Karl Piëch is an Austrian business magnate, engineer and executive who is currently the chairman of the supervisory board of Volkswagen Group....

. Bernhard then rejoined Daimler in April 2009.