BMW Group South Africa has announced three executive leadership changes across its IT and financial services operations, with outgoing executives taking up international roles within the group.
Hans Coertze | image supplied
Thorsten Achenbach, Stefan Schuett and Roger Rooden are moving from their respective South African positions into roles in the BMW Group’s international network, while Hans Coertze, Jan-Christian Klages and Andreas Koser take over as the new local leaders.
Achenbach is leaving his position as director of the BMW IT Hub South Africa to become director of the IT Region Americas in South Carolina.
During his time in South Africa, Achenbach helped develop the IT Hub into a global delivery operation and positioned it as a centre for AI innovation within BMW Group’s international IT network, according to the company.
He will be replaced by Hans Coertze, who returns to the South African IT Hub after previously holding several leadership positions there, including general manager between 2014 and 2023.
Coertze most recently headed BMW Group IT Region APAC, covering Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. His responsibilities included IT delivery and operations across 12 national sales companies, 10 BMW Group Financial Services markets and two CKD production plants.
Coertze joined BMW Group in 1992 as a mechanical engineering graduate at BMW Group Plant Rosslyn and subsequently helped establish the company’s first international IT infrastructure support teams in South Africa.
Changes at BMW Financial Services
BMW Financial Services South Africa is also getting new leadership.
Stefan Schuett is leaving his position as CEO of BMW Financial Services South Africa to become CEO of BMW Financial Services Malaysia.
BMW said Schuett oversaw an internal and business transformation during his tenure in South Africa.
Jan-Christian Klages will succeed him as CEO. Klages joined BMW Group in 2003 and has held senior financial services, finance and strategy positions across Australia, the Middle East, Russia and Germany.
His international experience includes establishing BMW's first Sharia-compliant captive finance operation in Dubai.
Before returning to South Africa, Klages was director and CFO of BMW Group Financial Services Nederland, where he led the merger and post-merger integration of Alphabet Nederland and BMW Group Financial Services.
The financial services leadership changes extend to the CFO position. Roger Rooden is moving from CFO of BMW Financial Services South Africa to become CFO of BMW Group Netherlands.
Andreas Koser will take over as CFO in South Africa, returning to a position he previously held between 2016 and 2021.
Koser most recently served as director and CFO of BMW Financial Services Polska in Warsaw. His more than 25 years with BMW Group have included senior finance roles in Munich and the UK, including supplier risk management, mergers and acquisitions and finance leadership at BMW Group Plant Hams Hall.
BMW Group South Africa CEO and chairman Peter van Binsbergen said the appointments demonstrate the depth of leadership talent developed within the company's South African operations.
The changes also highlight the role of BMW's South African businesses within the wider group, with all three departing executives moving into senior international positions while their replacements bring experience from other BMW operations around the world.
