Biography

Appointed as the Alliance Director in charge of the Strategic Cooperation with Daimler AG in May 2010, Jacques Verdonck started his career with Renault in 1992.

After an early career (1979-1983) with the French Ministry of Industry, where he was Secrétaire Général de la Direction de la Qualité et de la Sécurité Industrielle, Verdonck was appointed CEO of CERLAB in 1984, helping to develop partnerships between state-owned laboratories and laboratories in developing countries and also promoting French know-how in the fields of quality, certification and testing.

In 1992, he became Vice President, Cooperation and Strategy, Renault Trucks, where amongst various responsibilities he was charged with developing a partnership with ZF Friedrichshafen AG and the Irisbus joint venture with Iveco. In 1999, he was appointed Executive Vice President of Strategy and Product Development for Irisbus Holding SL.

Jacques Verdonck returned to Renault in April 2000 as Vice President, Planning and Strategy (Sales and Marketing) and by September 2001 had been appointed Vice President, Corporate and Strategic Planning, for the Renault Group. He oversaw the partnership with Avtovaz in Russia and the development of the Renault brand in Iran, India and Morocco, as well as negotiated the Strategic Cooperation between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Daimler AG, a role which led directly to his current position.

Jacques Verdonck was born on November 22, 1954 and is a graduate of the Ecole Polytechnique and Ecole des Mines de Paris.