Michael previously served as the executive director, marketing and sales management for Volkswagen AG, where he spearheaded the Group’s product planning, sales and marketing functions. He was also critical to the planning of Volkswagen’s global development strategy and orchestrating trend scouting in future key markets like India, Russia and China.

Before joining Volkswagen, Michael performed various senior finance roles for DaimlerChrysler AG, serving as executive vice president and CFO of Mitsubishi Motors Europe. In this role, he managed Mitsubishi’s consolidated European operations and was instrumental in expanding the company’s distribution network in Germany, France, Spain, Belgium and Switzerland.

Prior to joining DaimlerChrysler, Michael was the finance director for the UK operations of Jungheinrich AG, one of the world’s largest suppliers of industrial trucks, and Europe’s leading supplier of warehousing technology.  

Michael completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Applied Science Osnabrück, Germany and holds a master’s degree in European Marketing Management from Brunel University London, UK.

Barnes has more than 25 years of automotive industry experience.  Prior to joining VW, Barnes served as director of the western region business center for Chrysler.  Before that, Barnes was vice president for national sales at Hyundai Motor America.  He has also held senior sales and management positions at Nissan North America including roles in regional marketing and dealer operations.

Barnes holds a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing and music from Indiana State University.

Joining Audi of America after many successful international assignments for the Audi brand, Johan most recently served as the President of Audi Japan for the last five years. During that time, he oversaw significant development of the Audi business, establishing an exclusive Audi dealer network and reconfiguring the product line-up. Audi sales in Japan more than doubled during this period.

Prior to joining Audi Japan in 1999, Johan held various management positions in the automotive industry for a total of 15 years of automotive experience. During this time he earned his MBA from the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Between 1981 and 1990 Johan occupied positions in the Plastics/Automotive components industry, and in government service. His interests include cycling, squash and motorsports. A highlight in the pursuit of this passion was the participation by Audi Sport Japan in the renowned Le Mans 24 hour race, which culminated in victory for the Audi R8 from Japan in 2004.

A native of France, Christophe has extensive experience with the Bentley marque having worked in various roles throughout the company for the past nine years. Prior to becoming COO in North America, Christophe was Managing Director for Bentley Europe, based in Berlin.

During his time in the Berlin office Christophe presided over a 20-fold increase in Bentley sales and was responsible for the introduction of the marque to six new markets including the fast growing Russian market. He was instrumental in guiding the investment plans of all 34 European dealers over the period from 2002 to 2007.

Founded in 1981, VW Credit, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. Operating in the United States as VW Credit, Audi Financial Services, and Bentley Financial Services, the company provides a full range of retail and wholesale financial services including retail loans, leases and balloon notes, as well as, mortgages and capital loans. Prior to joining VCI in 2000, Kevin was Corporate Controller at Volkswagen of America. He graduated with an MBA at the University of Toledo, Ohio.