Annette Winkler hands over management of smart

• The executive steps down from her position as head of #smart and thus from her operational activities at Daimler after 23 years
• Her successor as of October 1 is to be announced at a later date
• Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars: “Annette Winkler has had a successful and lasting impact on Mercedes-Benz, and especially on #smart, over a period of many years.”
• Winkler will continue to be associated with Daimler as a member of the supervisory board of Mercedes-Benz South Africa

Stuttgart - Dr. #annettewinkler (58) is to leave her position as head of #smart at Daimler AG after eight years on September 30, 2018. Daimler will announce the future head of the #smart management at a later date.

Annette Winkler, head of the #smart product area at Daimler AG: “ One of the key responsibilities of every executive is to pass on leading positions to the next generation at the right time. And that time has now come – with the clear focus of #smart as a fully electric urban-mobility brand and with the decision to develop the Hambach facility into a plant for fully electric vehicles within the Mercedes-Benz production network. With my endless passion for #smart and the people behind it, this decision was not easy for me. I am all the more pleased that I can now support the handover to a successor. I will continue to be a passionate ambassador for #smart and Daimler in the future – just as I have always been for the past 23 years with great enthusiasm and gratitude.”

The Board of Management thanks Dr. #annettewinkler for her many years of successful work. Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars: “ #annettewinkler has had a successful and lasting impact on Mercedes-Benz, and especially on #smart, over a period of many years. As a true entrepreneurial personality, she has led #smart to new successes and systematically transformed it into an electric mobility brand. Under Annette Winkler’s leadership, the #smart plant in Hambach has continually improved its competitiveness and is extremely well positioned for the future.”

However, Winkler will continue to be associated with the Daimler Group. She will be appointed to the supervisory board of Mercedes-Benz South Africa effective January 1, 2019, where she will continue to contribute her enthusiasm and great experience with employees and dealerships.