Volkswagen's new CEO promises a more ethical culture

Volkswagen's new CEO, Herbert Diess, has vowed to build a more ethical culture after the company's diesel emissions scandal and outlined a new structure aimed at streamlining decision-making at the sprawling company.

Diess said today at the shareholder meeting that company's six divisions would make their own decisions and without always getting approval from the top.

He said that while cases of unethical conduct can happen anywhere, "we definitely had too many of them." He said achieving a stronger ethics culture was a core business goal, "just as are vehicle development and marketing."
Diess was addressing his first shareholder meeting since taking over as CEO from Matthias Mueller on April 12. He praised Mueller's contributions to moving the company past the scandal and said he took over with the company in "robust condition."
Board Chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch condemned the monkey experiments in his speech. He said they were under investigation and "in no way comprehensible."