TotalEnergies vs Volkswagen: Founders, CEOs and History

TotalEnergies

Founded

1924

Headquarters

Paris, France

Current CEO

Patrick Pouyanné

Employees

100,000

Volkswagen

Founded

1937

Headquarters

Wolfsburg, Germany

Current CEO

Oliver Blume

Employees

663,000

TotalEnergies

• Raymond Poincaré

  Raymond Poincaré was President of France during World War I and Prime Minister when his government pushed for a national oil company in 1924.

• Ernest Mercier

  Ernest Mercier was the industrialist chosen to set up and chair Compagnie Française des Pétroles.

Volkswagen

• Ferdinand Porsche

  Ferdinand Porsche (1875-1951) was an Austrian-born automotive engineer who had worked for Lohner, Austro-Daimler and Daimler-Benz before opening his own design office in Stuttgart in 1931.

TotalEnergies

1. Thierry Desmarest1995–2007

   Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

   Under his leadership, Total more than doubled in size, becoming a dominant global supermajor capable of competing with Exxon and Shell.

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2. Christophe de Margerie2007–2014

   Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

   He transformed Total into one of the most geographically diverse supermajors before his sudden death in a plane crash in 2014.

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3. Patrick Pouyanné2014–present

   Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

   CEO since October 2014 and Chairman since December 2015, Pouyanné renamed the company TotalEnergies in 2021, expanded LNG and Integrated Power, and kept returns at the top of the majors (12.6% ROACE in 2025).

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4. Jean-Pierre Sbraire2019–present

   Chief Financial Officer

   As CFO, he fortified the balance sheet during unprecedented energy market volatility following the geopolitical shocks of 2022.

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Volkswagen

1. Hermann Münch1946–1947

   Chief Executive Officer

   Early executive involved in the incredibly complex immediate post-war administration of the completely destroyed factory under British military control.

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2. Heinrich Nordhoff1948–1968

   Chief Executive Officer

   The absolute legendary post-war architect who took the ruins of the VW factory and transformed the Beetle into a massive, globally beloved cultural icon and economic miracle.

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3. Kurt Lotz1968–1971

   Chief Executive Officer

   Early post-war leader who began the critical process of diversifying VW's lineup beyond relying entirely on a single model (the Beetle).

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4. Rudolf Leiding1971–1975

   Chief Executive Officer

   Crucial CEO who managed the extremely difficult, highly risky transition away from the iconic but severely outdated Beetle toward modern, front-wheel-drive water-cooled cars (like the Golf).

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5. Toni Schmücker1975–1982

   Chief Executive Officer

   Guided the company through the severe financial crises of the 1970s, ensuring the successful launch and massive adoption of the original VW Golf.

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6. Carl Hahn1982–1993

   Chief Executive Officer

   As CEO in the 1980s, he executed the massive, highly strategic acquisitions of SEAT and Skoda, laying the foundation for VW's absolute dominance in Europe.

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7. Ferdinand Piëch1993–2002

   Chief Executive Officer

   As the legendary, absolutely ruthless patriarch (and grandson of Ferdinand Porsche), he transformed VW from a struggling mass-market brand into the most powerful automotive conglomerate on Earth.

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8. Bernd Pischetsrieder2002–2006

   Chief Executive Officer

   Serving as CEO from 2002 to 2006, he oversaw the incredibly complex integration of massive luxury brands like Bugatti and Bentley into the VW Group portfolio.

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9. Martin Winterkorn2007–2015

   Chief Executive Officer

   As the notoriously demanding, absolutely feared CEO, he oversaw massive global expansion but fostered a culture of absolute terror that led engineers to cheat rather than admit failure.

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10. Matthias Müller2015–2018

    Chief Executive Officer

    As CEO during the darkest period in modern VW history, he initiated the massive cultural purge of the toxic, highly secretive engineering culture that caused the cheating scandal.

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11. Herbert Diess2018–2022

    Chief Executive Officer

    Serving as CEO, he forcefully dragged the massive, highly bureaucratic legacy automaker into the Tesla era, though his abrasive style alienated the powerful Porsche-Piëch families.

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12. Oliver Blume2022–present

    Chairman of the Board of Management

    He also ran Porsche AG alongside the group role until Michael Leiters took over as Porsche CEO on January 1, 2026, leaving Blume focused on Volkswagen Group.

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TotalEnergies

• Direct Energie2018$1.6B
• Saft Groupe2016Undisclosed
• SunPower (majority stake)2011Undisclosed
• Petrofina and Elf Aquitaine1999Undisclosed

Volkswagen

• Porsche AG2012Undisclosed
• Bentley Motors1998Undisclosed
• Auto Union / Audi1965Undisclosed