But what will he do in this galley? Why then Luca de Meo, leader of the automotive industry, crowned with success, agreed to fly to the rescue of Renault, the tricolor champion today in the midst of a crisis? During the Losange general assembly on June 19, the Italian assured, in impeccable French, barely tinged with a slight accent, that he was above all attracted by the “challenge”. “Righting one of the biggest, and I would say one of the most prestigious car manufacturers in the world, is perhaps one of the most beautiful challenges I have had so far,” did he declare.
“He has a real affection for Renault, he has always been concerned about the fate of the company”, confirms the consultant Philippe Chain, who has known him since their joint adventure within the Rhombus, almost thirty years ago. “He is very stimulated by the challenge, he is convinced that he will succeed. “ By agreeing to become the new managing director of Renault, Luca de Meo, who has just turned 53, has given up pursuing his journey within the Volkswagen group – even accepting, according to certain sources, to reduce his remuneration.
Huge mark of trust
He has just spent his last four years pulling the Seat brand from the rut in which it found itself, making a masterful return to profit. “He did a huge job. Seat was struggling to find its place at Volkswagen. He knew how to give it character by targeting young people, he launched the sports brand Cupra, made it the bridgehead of the group for new mobility… ”, do we breathe in a competitor. Volkswagen had even just entrusted him with the development of the group’s small electric platform. “It is a huge mark of confidence for the German group, reputed to be very strict”, comments the ex-number two of Renault, Patrick Pelata.
Wherever he went, the man who will become, on July 1, the non-French chief executive of the Losange, seduced and convinced. A graduate of the prestigious Milanese Bocconi University, Luca de Meo started his career … at Renault in 1992. “He already stood out very clearly, and he was already very ambitious”, smiles Philippe Chain. Recruited by Toyota in 1998, the Italian manager joined the Fiat group in 2004 (notably on the Lancia, Fiat and Alfa Romeo brands), then the Volkswagen group in 2009, where he was entrusted with the group’s marketing management and of the VW brand, then that of Audi, before being appointed CEO of Seat at the end of 2015.
Extraordinary announcements
“He was our youngest European manager of the year, in 2009, for his success at Fiat”, says Dan Vardie, founder and director of the European Autobest jury, who has known him for twenty years. The repositioning in 2007 of the legendary Fiat 500 in a trendy car, much more lucrative than the previous one, remains one of its great feats of arms. “He’s a true marketing genius,” says Dan Vardie. “All the big names in the sector were rave: Sergio Marchionne [alors à la tête de Fiat Chrysler], Martin Winterkorn [ex-patron de Volkswagen], Jim Farley [actuel dirigeant de Ford]. You can expect extraordinary announcements in the next six months! “, the professional predicts. “At Audi, he had an extraordinary aura with the sales and marketing teams. People were all ‘babas’ ”, confirms Philippe Chain, who also rubbed shoulders with the German manufacturer.
Luca de Meo seems to have no faults. “He has a very strong reputation”, testifies Jacques Aschenbroich, CEO of Valeo. “He has the automobile in his blood and knows the sector perfectly, which is currently undergoing severe technological and market disruptions. He’s the right man for Renault! “ Not a discordant voice to praise not only his skills, but also his human qualities. “It’s a Latin. He is friendly, affable, charming. And he has a lot of humor! “, said one of his former colleagues.
“Moments with Luca”
“He is very lively, very charismatic. He is a seducer, a man of consensus. Without being tender or soft ”, adds Philippe Chain. It is also said to be demanding and impatient. “When he has an idea in mind, it has to follow!” “, advances another witness. But he prefers to use his power of conviction rather than his authority. “He listens a lot, and knows how to gather”, slides Patrick Pelata. The unions say it is close to the employees. At Seat, he had set up “moments with Luca” to meet regularly with company staff. The few words spoken during the Losange general assembly were well received by the group’s employees. “His passionate side, his desire, his perception of the challenge to be met and his commitment, all this is rather reassuring”, comments Mariette Rih, FO central delegate.
A great football lover (he supports Juventus in Turin), Luca de Meo also loves techno music (we say DJ in his spare time), sports cars and luxury watches. “He has a taste for beautiful things, without being obsessed with money”, breath Philippe Chain.
In Barcelona, where Seat’s headquarters are located, the Italian leader has in any case left a fond memory. “He is a true leader. He quickly integrated into civil society and the local economic world. For a non Catalan, this is remarkable! “, says Philippe Saman, the director general of the CCI France Espagne in Barcelona. In less than four years he was appointed to the council of the city’s very influential Cercle d’Economia, and was awarded the 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year Medal of Honor by the Catalan employers. All the economic heart of the region hurried to the ceremony organized in his honor, on March 5.
Another planet
Having finally been able to move in May, after the deconfinement, he began to survey the corridors of the quai du point du jour in Boulogne, where Renault’s headquarters are located, at the beginning of June. Will it live up to the “challenge” it aspires to take up? Renault is not Seat. Can Luca de Meo succeed at the head of a group seven times larger in terms of sales (3.8 million vehicles sold in 2019, compared to 574,000 for the Spanish brand), employing 12 times more employees (180,000, against 15,000 at Seat)? “It will arrive on another planet, that’s for sure. But function makes man. He has all the required skills ”, wants to believe a Renault administrator.
The future boss of Losange is not an engineer. He has neither the networks nor the detailed knowledge of the tricolor political-economic culture, a priori necessary to lead a group of this size in France. “He can rely on in-house resources”, notes the same source. “Renault recruited Gilles Le Borgne, former PSA chief engineer, six months ago. And Jean-Dominique Senard, [le président de Renault] no shortage of connections in the business world! “
Luca de Meo is also said to have this amazing ability to adapt to new cultures. He is fluent in five languages (Italian, German, English, Spanish and French), and even a little Catalan… “Not having a home past can also be a good thing”, slides a good connoisseur of the group. After the governance crisis crossed by the Rhombus in the wake of the Ghosn affair, eighteen months ago, the freshness of the new managing director will undoubtedly be an asset.
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