JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — Martina Biene has been appointed to Škoda Auto’s Board of Management with responsibility for Sales and Marketing, ending her four-year tenure as chair and managing director of Volkswagen Group Africa. The leadership change will take effect on October 1, 2026.
Škoda Auto confirmed the appointment as part of a wider Volkswagen Group reshuffle. Biene will succeed Martin Jahn, while Porsche executive Christiane Zorn will replace her at Volkswagen Group Africa.
What is Martina Biene’s new role? Martina Biene will become Škoda Auto’s Board Member for Sales and Marketing on October 1, 2026. She is leaving Volkswagen Group Africa, which she has led since 2022. Christiane Zorn will take control of the African business on the same date.
Biene will lead Škoda’s global sales and marketing portfolio from the company’s base in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Jahn, who has held the Škoda position since March 2021, will move to the Volkswagen brand as Board Member for Sales, Marketing and After Sales.
Škoda chief executive Klaus Zellmer said Biene’s international experience and customer-focused approach would support the manufacturer’s expansion in global markets. The company said the appointment forms part of a coordinated handover across several Volkswagen Group brands rather than a standalone departure from the African operation.
The Volkswagen Group leadership announcement places Biene’s move alongside other changes involving Volkswagen, Audi and the group’s North American business. Volkswagen said the reshuffle is intended to put experienced executives into market and sales roles as customer demand changes across regions.
Christiane Zorn will lead Volkswagen Group Africa
Zorn will become chair and managing director of Volkswagen Group Africa on October 1 and will report directly to Volkswagen brand chief Thomas Schäfer. She is currently Porsche’s vice-president for the overseas region.
Volkswagen says Zorn has worked in the automotive industry for 20 years. Her earlier career included consulting at Boston Consulting Group, positions at BMW in Munich and Beijing, and senior roles at Audi covering China sales, product marketing and product strategy. She joined Porsche in May 2025.
The simultaneous appointments create a direct leadership transition: Biene moves to Škoda as Zorn assumes responsibility for Volkswagen’s operations and growth plans in Africa. Neither company announced additional changes to the Volkswagen Group Africa management team.
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Martina Biene Appointed to Škoda Sales and Marketing Board
Sep 4, 2026
Sep 4, 2026
4 min read
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JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — Martina Biene has been appointed to Škoda Auto’s Board of Management with responsibility for Sales and Marketing, ending her four-year tenure as chair and managing director of Volkswagen Group Africa. The leadership change will take effect on October 1, 2026.
Škoda Auto confirmed the appointment as part of a wider Volkswagen Group reshuffle. Biene will succeed Martin Jahn, while Porsche executive Christiane Zorn will replace her at Volkswagen Group Africa.
What is Martina Biene’s new role? Martina Biene will become Škoda Auto’s Board Member for Sales and Marketing on October 1, 2026. She is leaving Volkswagen Group Africa, which she has led since 2022. Christiane Zorn will take control of the African business on the same date.
Biene will lead Škoda’s global sales and marketing portfolio from the company’s base in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Jahn, who has held the Škoda position since March 2021, will move to the Volkswagen brand as Board Member for Sales, Marketing and After Sales.
Škoda chief executive Klaus Zellmer said Biene’s international experience and customer-focused approach would support the manufacturer’s expansion in global markets. The company said the appointment forms part of a coordinated handover across several Volkswagen Group brands rather than a standalone departure from the African operation.
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The Volkswagen Group leadership announcement places Biene’s move alongside other changes involving Volkswagen, Audi and the group’s North American business. Volkswagen said the reshuffle is intended to put experienced executives into market and sales roles as customer demand changes across regions.
Christiane Zorn will lead Volkswagen Group Africa
Zorn will become chair and managing director of Volkswagen Group Africa on October 1 and will report directly to Volkswagen brand chief Thomas Schäfer. She is currently Porsche’s vice-president for the overseas region.
Volkswagen says Zorn has worked in the automotive industry for 20 years. Her earlier career included consulting at Boston Consulting Group, positions at BMW in Munich and Beijing, and senior roles at Audi covering China sales, product marketing and product strategy. She joined Porsche in May 2025.
The simultaneous appointments create a direct leadership transition: Biene moves to Škoda as Zorn assumes responsibility for Volkswagen’s operations and growth plans in Africa. Neither company announced additional changes to the Volkswagen Group Africa management team.
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A four-year African leadership chapter
Biene has led Volkswagen Group Africa since September 2022. Volkswagen described her appointment at the time as a first for the company, making her its first female chair and managing director in South Africa.
Her tenure included a major production milestone at the Kariega plant in the Eastern Cape. Volkswagen reported a record 167,084 vehicles built at the facility in 2024, surpassing the previous record of 161,954 set in 2019. The plant also became the sole supplier of the Polo for European and Asia-Pacific markets in July 2024.
Volkswagen also announced a R4 billion investment in the Kariega operation during Biene’s tenure. The programme is preparing the plant to add a third model from 2027, alongside the Polo and Polo Vivo. XTRAfrica previously reported on Volkswagen’s investment in the South African plant.
More than two decades inside Volkswagen
Biene joined Volkswagen in 2001 and has worked across strategy, premium-vehicle sales, regional sales management, product planning and global product marketing. Her assignments included responsibility for Belgium and Luxembourg, product planning in Germany and leadership of the Volkswagen passenger-car brand in South Africa.
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She returned to Germany in August 2020 to head Volkswagen’s Small and Compact Product Line before coming back to South Africa in 2022. Her move to Škoda now places her in charge of a global commercial portfolio after senior assignments in both European and African markets.
A Reuters report on the transition connected the appointment with the production growth and investment recorded at Kariega during her leadership. Volkswagen and Škoda did not disclose changes to Biene’s employment terms.
The next confirmed milestone is October 1, when Biene, Jahn and Zorn are expected to begin their new responsibilities. Until then, Biene remains chair and managing director of Volkswagen Group Africa.
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