McLaren Group announces new board appointments including ex-Porsche CEO

The McLaren Group, which encompasses its Automotive, Racing and Technology businesses, has announced five new board appointees following a £550million cash injection from both existing and new investment sources secured in this middle of this year.

Two of these appointments have been drawn from new major shareholders Ares Management Corp and Public Investment Fund (PIF), with one more coming from existing shareholder Mumtalakat. These three executive board placements will accompany their investment to support the long-term strategic growth of McLaren Automotive, which has been dealt various financial challenges before and during the global pandemic.

There has also been the appointment of two non-executive directors, brought onto the board to leverage their experience from time in leading roles across the automotive industry. These include Stefan Jacoby, who served as an executive vice president and president of General Motors’ international operations, as well as CEO of Volvo and the VW’s American operations before that. 

The second non-executive position will be filled by Michael Macht, ex-Porsche CEO and former member of VW's executive board. These experienced placements from the wider OEM car industry will help fortify McLaren’s future production and development activity as it moves towards a new generation of products, starting with the hybrid-powered Artura.

This news comes after further asset generation from the sale of the McLaren Technology Centre, and with investments into increased capacity and an all-new powertrain now paid for, the worst of the McLaren Group’s financial challenges should be over. This should mean big things for the Automotive business over the next couple of years, and with a pair of eCoty wins under its belt already, we can’t wait to see what it has coming up next.