Mercedes-Benz Communications Undergoes Key Personnel Transitions

Personalwechsel in der Mercedes-Benz Kommunikation: Willem Spelten, Katja Bott, Rob Halloway, Bettina Fetzer, Tobias Just (v.l.n.r.).
Personnel changes within Mercedes-Benz Communications: Willem Spelten, Katja Bott, Rob Halloway, Bettina Fetzer, Tobias Just (from left to right).

(IN BRIEF) Mercedes-Benz announces key changes in its communications leadership team. Rob Halloway, with nearly 20 years of experience at Renault, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz, will head global product, technology, and brand communications for Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans, succeeding Katja Bott, who takes on the role of CEO at the Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance Center. Additionally, Willem Spelten, known for his diverse roles at Mercedes-Benz, will become the Head of Corporate Communications, overseeing internal and external communications for Mercedes-Benz Group AG. These strategic shifts emphasize the brand’s focus on experienced leadership to drive its communications efforts forward.

(PRESS RELEASE) STUTTGART, 28-Aug-2022 — /EuropaWire/ — The Mercedes-Benz Group AG (former Daimler AG), one of the world’s most successful automotive companies, announces that Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans will go through significant changes in its global communications team, effective September 2023. Rob Halloway (48) is slated to lead global product, technology, and brand communications for Mercedes-Benz passenger car brands, including Mercedes-Maybach and Mercedes-AMG, along with Mercedes-Benz Vans. Rob Halloway, a seasoned communications expert with nearly two decades of experience at renowned automotive brands like Renault, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz, will take over from Katja Bott. Bott assumes the role of CEO at the Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance Center (CAC) Maastricht N.V., enhancing the pivotal customer-brand interface.

Having excelled in diverse roles at Mercedes-Benz, Willem Spelten (44) will step into the role of Head of Corporate Communications from November 1, 2023. This position encompasses global internal and external corporate communications for Mercedes-Benz Group AG across areas such as Finance, Production, Sales, Human Resources, Integrity and Legal, External Affairs, Strategy, and Group Spokesperson duties. Willem Spelten’s appointment follows the distinguished tenure of Tobias Just, who transitions to a managerial role in Mercedes-Benz Sales from November 2023, following a shared acclimatization phase. Specifics of Tobias Just’s new role will be revealed at a later date.

Willem Spelten’s extensive journey within Mercedes-Benz spans across various markets and sales tiers. He previously led communications for smart, founded a new brand and lifestyle communications department at Mercedes-Benz, and managed corporate and product communications at Mitsubishi Fuso in Japan and Bharat Benz in India. Presently, he oversees sales management and product management for Mercedes-Maybach.

These strategic personnel changes underscore Mercedes-Benz’s commitment to fortify its communications infrastructure with seasoned expertise, reflecting the brand’s continued pursuit of innovation and excellence.

“After many years in PR, I am pleased that Katja and Tobias have been given the opportunity to build up expertise and contribute their skills in other specialist areas of our Group. With their broad knowledge of brand, product and strategy, they will make a significant contribution to the continued success of our company at key interfaces within the Group. I am immensely grateful to both of them for the joint redesign of communications over the past few years. With a great deal of passion, courage and humour, we as a team have developed communications across the industry into a benchmark.
The successors Rob and Willem will build on this strong foundation and top teams. Both are proven communications experts and have a wealth of experience and in-depth knowledge of the international PR landscape. I am very much looking forward to working with them and am excited about the impetus they will bring to our ongoing journey of transformation,” commented Bettina Fetzer, Head of Communications and Marketing, Mercedes-Benz AG.

“Katja has done an outstanding job over the past five years as Head of Global Communications for our Passenger Cars and Vans, for which I would like to expressly thank her. I wish her all the best and much success for her new challenge as CEO of CAC Maastricht. Thanks to Katja’s global communications and leadership skills, we will be able to significantly develop our global customer approach and our service orientation at this important interface. And of course: welcome, Rob! With Rob Halloway, we have been able to attract an internationally positioned PR professional to our communications leadership team, and I am very much looking forward to working together,” said Britta Seeger, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG. Sales.

“I would like to sincerely thank Tobias for the close and trusting cooperation over the past years. He successfully ran internal and external communications at our company and played a key role in helping to shape the strategic positioning of Mercedes-Benz. I am pleased that he will be using his skills in operational sales responsibility for our company. In Willem Spelten we have a highly qualified successor who, with his profound and international COM expertise, is ideally suited for the role of Group spokesperson. I am very much looking forward to working with him,” expressed Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG.

Media contacts:

Alexander Helf
Head of Brand, Design & Lifestyle Communications
Email: alexander.helf@mercedes-benz.com
Phone: +49 176 30916593

Khanh-Binh Le
Manager Brand, Marketing, Lifestyle & Influencer Communications
Email: khanh-binh.le@mercedes-benz.com
Phone: +49 160 8620071

SOURCE: Mercedes-Benz Group AG