EVP – International Strategy — Automotive-Chip Business

The mandate

A German automotive-chip business is transitioning its roadmap as vehicle architectures consolidate functions and regional manufacturers pursue different electrification, compute and localisation paths. Product teams have proposed several derivatives, but engineering capacity, foundry routes and customer qualification cannot support all of them. An urgent new EVP – International Strategy will select where common platforms end and regional products begin.

Approximately 1,575 employees and material partners span design, software, applications, operations and commercial functions. The EVP owns international portfolio thesis, market scenarios, partnership choices and resource allocation and reports to the Group Chief Executive or sponsor.

Market analysis will follow vehicle platforms and adoption evidence. Announced production, nomination, qualification and actual take rate represent different probabilities. Regulation and localisation can affect content, but strategy will not infer a product requirement from policy headlines alone.

Platform economics must include safety, software, package, test, applications and lifetime support. Regional variants can unlock customers but split validation and create long obligations. The EVP will demand reuse evidence and explicit exit rules.

Manufacturing routes are strategic. Foundry, package and test alternatives differ in qualification time and customer approval. The roadmap will stage commitments and value flexibility without pretending an unqualified source is resilience.

Partnerships with vehicle, system, software or silicon firms require clear IP, roadmap and customer rights. The strategist will distinguish ecosystem access from dependence and preserve the ability to support products after a partner changes direction.

The role is urgent because architecture decisions precede the next annual plan. The appointee will establish one international decision forum and a small team close to customers and engineering.

Vehicle safety and cybersecurity obligations can outlive commercial production. Roadmap cases will include vulnerability response, change approval, diagnostic support, mask and test retention and service inventory. A regional derivative that wins near-term revenue but fragments these obligations may destroy lifetime value.

Currency, incentives and trade rules influence localisation but must not become the only thesis. The EVP will examine eligibility, duration, local capability and exit cost. A subsidy-dependent manufacturing route requires a downside case for policy expiry, lower vehicle volume and customer relocation.

Competitor and technology scenarios will state falsifiable assumptions. Centralised vehicle compute may reduce some controllers while raising performance and safety demand elsewhere; electrification growth may vary by segment. The strategist will identify leading customer and platform indicators and alter resource allocation when they move.

Acquisitions or licensing may fill capability gaps, but integration capacity is scarce. The EVP will compare build, partner and buy, including IP provenance, customer acceptance and retention of key engineers. Transaction completion is not a substitute for an adopted roadmap capability.

International customer governance will prevent regional teams from promising incompatible exclusivity, package or support. One decision record will show reserved matters and exceptions, while account leaders retain relationships and technical teams retain qualification authority.

Capital allocation will include downside liquidity and opportunity cost. A derivative can consume masks, validation vehicles and applications support that would otherwise strengthen a common platform. The EVP will show which future options disappear when each branch is funded, not only the branch’s standalone return.

Sustainability and resilience will influence manufacturing choices where material. Energy, water, logistics, recoverability and concentrated sub-tiers can alter long-term customer and regulatory value. These factors will be quantified without converting the strategy process into unsupported environmental claims.

Each assumption will carry an owner.

What you will own

• Define international portfolio and platform-versus-variant choices.
• Build regional vehicle and customer adoption scenarios.
• Allocate engineering and capital through evidence gates.
• Integrate foundry, package, software and lifetime economics.
• Evaluate partnerships and localisation routes.
• Set decision triggers, exit criteria and post-investment review.
• Align strategy with customer and manufacturing readiness.
• Build international strategy talent.

The first 12 months

In the first 60 days, review roadmap branches, customer evidence and manufacturing paths and identify resources counted twice. Present stop, stage and prioritise choices before architecture freeze.

By month six, approve an international portfolio, conclude priority partnerships and reassign engineering. Establish customer and localisation triggers for investment.

At twelve months, remove 25% of unsupported derivatives, redirect at least €100 million of programme value and secure three customer-backed validation paths. Portfolio milestone forecast should remain within 15%. No new variant should lack full qualification and lifetime-support economics.

What the sponsor will measure

• Regional demand grounded in vehicle adoption evidence.
• Platform reuse distinguished from costly derivative proliferation.
• Manufacturing qualification reflected in market timing.
• Partnerships preserving IP and lifecycle control.
• Resources moved when assumptions fail.
• One international strategy understood across functions.

The person

You bring 22–28 years in automotive semiconductor strategy, product or business leadership. You have decided international roadmap and localisation choices across vehicle customers and manufacturing partners.

Your prior scope should exceed €1 billion revenue or investment and 1,200 employees and partners. Evidence must include a regional variant stopped, a partnership decision and a roadmap resource reallocation. German and English fluency are required.

Compensation and terms

Base compensation is €250,000–330,000 plus annual incentive linked to portfolio value, customer evidence, resource allocation and leadership. This permanent onsite Dresden role reports to the Group Chief Executive or designated sponsor. Appointment is urgent.

Confidentiality

The business, roadmap, vehicle customers, suppliers and partnerships remain confidential. Detail follows fit, conflicts and signed confidentiality. Applicants must not contact industry participants to identify the enterprise.