Bosch CEO Volkmar Denner adds chief technical officer position in board shuffle

Robert Bosch has shuffled its management board, with CEO Volkmar Denner adding the position of chief technical officer and oversight of the chief digital office after the departure of two executives, Uwe Raschke and Michael Bolle. 

Raschke, who is retiring, has been a board member since 2008, and currently head of the Bosch Consumer Goods business sector. He joined the company in 1984.

Bolle has been on the board since July 2018 and currently holds the positions of chief technical officer and chief digital officer. He is leaving Bosch “to pursue opportunities in the high-tech and startup sectors,” Bosch said in a news release Friday. He began his career at Bosch in 1992.

“As CTO and CDO, Michael Bolle systematically drove forward the company’s digital and technological transformation,” Denner said in a statement, adding that Bolle was instrumental in establishing the Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence and an AI campus in Tuebingen, Germany, as well as the Bosch AI code of ethics.

Raschke and Bolle will leave the board effective June 30. 

Christian Fletcher will assume Rathke’s responsibility as head of Consumer Goods. Fletcher already has responsibility for the Energy and Business Technology business sectors, and is chief performance officer for the group.

Tanja Rueckert will become chief digital officer on July 1, reporting to Denner. Rueckert joined Bosch in July 2018 and is currently head of the Building Technologies division.

In other changes, Stefan Hartung, the chairman of Bosch’s Mobility Services business sector, will assume responsibility for corporate quality management.

Denner had previously held the position of chief technical officer. Last July, he also assumed oversight of the Chinese market.

Robert Bosch ranks No. 1 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 global suppliers, with worldwide sales to automakers of $46.6 billion in 2019.