Nineteen young and talented automotive executives on Wednesday received their Rising Star awards from Automotive News Europe at a gala awards dinner in Prague.
Since the program was started in 2011, Automotive News Europe has awarded more than 220 Rising Stars.
The 12th annual Rising Stars awards recognize fast-climbing auto leaders who are already taking big steps forward in the industry. From automakers to suppliers, manufacturing to connected cars, engineering to e-commerce, each Rising Star has spearheaded change and made progress up the career ladder.
The 2022 Rising Stars are (listed in alphabetical order by award):
- Florian Büngener — Hyundai Europe — Communications
- Timo Bularczyk — Mercedes-Benz Mobility — Connectivity
- Olivier Doit — Stellantis — Cybersecurity
- Philipp Engler — BMW Group — Digital
- Katia Maeso Bucher — Seat — Distribution Strategy
- Damir Cindric – Rimac Technology — Electrification
- David Herberg — Adient — Engineering
- Florian Petit — Blickfeld – Entrepreneur
- Dirk Adelmann — Smart Europe — General Management
- Jeroen Decleer — Dana — General Management
- Sebastian Grams — Audi Sport — General Management
- Joonas Laine — Lynk & CO — IT
- Bettina Fetzer — Mercedes-Benz — Marketing Communications
- Olia Michou — Vulog – Mobility
- Cliodhna Lyons — Nissan — Product Planning
- Julie Stears — Jaguar Land Rover — Quality
- Florian Aragon — Toyota Europe — Sales
- Muammer Yolga — AVL List — Software Testing
- Nari Kahle — Cariad (VW Group) — Sustainability
Click here to see their full profiles.
“The 19 people who we honor this year are special. They rose to the top from a pool of more than 130 candidates, making this year’s selection process the most competitive in the history of the award,” Automotive News Europe Associate Publisher & Editor Luca Ciferri said. “We have recognized more than 220 people as Rising Stars in the last 12 years and many of them are leading our industry through its most dramatic transition ever. We expect the same from this year’s winners.”
The prestigious Automotive News Europe Rising Stars awards are jointly presented with our exclusive lead sponsor, Capgemini and our partner, Mercuri Urval.
Each winner received a trophy designed by Pininfarina.
A Rising Star is an executive with a pan-European profile working in the automotive, or other industries helping to drive the future of mobility, who has driven change, fostered innovation and made courageous decisions.
To qualify, candidates should have a minimum of 10 years of work experience, have multiple language skills and be 45 years or younger. Nominations are accepted from automakers, suppliers, automotive service and mobility providers and retail/aftersales businesses.