2021 Speakers

As President and CEO of AutoForecast Solutions LLC (AFS), Joe leverages his decades of industry experience and knowledge to provide production forecasting and advisory services to the global automotive community. Joe manages the automotive turnkey operations at AFS including the global light vehicle, powertrain, drivetrain, and alternative propulsion forecast as well as a suite of AFS proprietary opportunity and sales planning software. AFS supports all tiered suppliers, VMs, government agencies, financial institutions, and the academic community with data, planning solutions, and a personalized support to help identify new business opportunities while mitigating risk. Joe’s 25+ year career in automotive forecasting ranges from his tenure at AutoFacts, PwC, AutomotiveCompass, and now AutoForecast Solutions. Joe earned his Bachelor’s of Chemical Engineering at Villanova University and an MBA at Pennsylvania State University.

Johanna Klewitz began studying International Business and Cultural Studies at the University of Passau. She completed her studies in 2009 as a graduate in International Business and Cultural Studies and moved to the Center for Sustainability Management at Leuphana University in Lüneburg as knowledge and transfer manager. She began her doctorate there in 2010, during which she researched sustainability strategies and innovations in businesses. After completing her doctorate as Dr. rer. pol., Johanna Klewitz joined Ball Packaging Europe (Ardagh Group) in 2014 as Manager of Sustainability and Regulatory Affairs. Dr Johanna Klewit has been Coordinator for Sustainability in Procurement Strategy at Audi since 2016. In her function, she works toge ther with her team to further develop and implement the “Responsible Supply Chain Management” strategy of Audi Procurement. The strategic focus areas include ‘People,’ ‘Environment’ and ‘Innovation,’ and are aligned with the goal of generating a positive impact in and along the supply chain.

Mathias Wijkström has been active in the truck industry since 2002. He is currently part of the Chassis and Cabs management team at Scania where he is responsible for the truck and bus chassis production in Södertälje. Before joining this team he had various position at Scania including, Head of SPS-office, MD of the production unit in France, Head of the Scania Foundry and different positions within Scania machining.

René Deist is a leader in digital transformation in the automotive industry. He joined ZF in December 2020 and has responsibility for digitalisation across the company’s internal operations, including IT systems, manufacturing, supply chain and finance. Before joining ZF, he was Chief Information Officer at tier-1 supplier Faurecia, where he led the global IT organisation and was also responsible for digitalisation and data processes across the company. He previously worked across IT at Bosch. He studied mathematics, business and computer sciences, and has carried research in applied and practical computer science. He is a passionate musician.

Nitin Rajurkar is a well-respected professional from the Automotive industry, with 40+ years of rich experience in the Automotive industry. He has served at Senior Positions with leading Automotive OEMs in Asia, like Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra and Vinfast LLC. He has a strong domain experience in Manufacturing Engineering, Manufacturing Operations, New Product Development, Program Management etc. He has been instrumental in planning and setting up of the Modern Manufacturing facility. He has been driving Automation and Robotics projects, to bring in efficiency and quality robustness. He is an exponent of promoting Digital Manufacturing Planning, Digital Twins, Manufacturing Execution System and Industry 4.0 in the Automotive Industry.

Raman is SVP and CIO of Johnson Electric, a multi-national supplier serving the automotive, industrial and medical industries, and is responsible for the digital transformation and acceleration of the company’s industry 4.0 journey. Prior to joining Johnson Electric earlier this year, Raman spent 4 years at Visteon as VP and CIO and leader of global IT, including design, development and implementation of global platforms and processes to increase performance. Prior to Visteon, Ramen held CIO roles at manufacturing service provider Fabrinet and automotive supplier EWIE Company, and was a director at Oracle for more than 13 years. Mehta has an MBA from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, a Bachelor of Engineering in electrical and electronics from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in Pilani, India.

Mr. Vinnie Mehta, Director General, ACMA is an Electrical Engineer from IIT-BHU, an MBA from FMS, University of Delhi and a Masters in International Trade from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT). He has been actively involved in promotion, growth and development of the auto component industry in India. Prior to joining ACMA, he headed the Manufacturers' Association for Information Technology (MAIT), the apex body of the IT hardware Industry in India

Klaus Koberg has been responsible for maintenance at the paintshop for Porsche’s Leipzig plant since 2013. He has more than 30 years’ experience in automotive production, including various roles at Opel’s factory in Bochum, where he had been a paintshop engineer, head of paintshop planning and head of maintenance at the plant until he joined Porsche. He has a degree in mechanical and construction engineering.