Deppen to take over from Schick at Daimler Truck China

Karl Deppen (left) and Hartmut Schick

Karl Deppen has been appointed new member of the Board of Management responsible for Truck China, including the joint-venture Beijing Foton Daimler and the regions in Japan and India with their brands FUSO and BharatBenz.

Deppen will take over from Harmut Schick, who will retire at the end of 2021 after 35 years at Daimler. Currently the head of Mercedes-Benz do Brasil, Deppen will take over on 1 December this year.

Deppen joined the group in 1990 and held various management position in purchasing and logistics. In 2007 he took over strategic project management for the Mercedes-Benz Atego truck, after which he moved to Beijing to become CFO of Daimler Greater China Ltd. Since 2020, Deppen has been CEO of Mercedes-Benz do Brasil Ltda, responsible for the Latin America region of Mercedes-Benz Trucks and Buses.

Speaking about the move, Martin Daum, chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler Truck AG and member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, said: “Karl Deppen knows the global commercial vehicle business from various assignments at different locations. He has successfully launched many projects in Europe, North and South America and Asia. With this valuable combination of experience and knowledge, Karl Deppen is exactly the right person for our commercial vehicle business in Asia.”

Daum continued: “I would like to thank Hartmut Schick most sincerely for his outstanding commitment. [He] has shaped our commercial vehicle business with his integrative and motivating leadership skills for more than a decade. In addition, Hartmut was an early proponent of zero-emission vehicles.”