VW Drive Your Career Day shows UTC students ‘what a career at Volkswagen means’

VW Drive Your Career Day, Feb. 22, 2024 (photo by Angela Foster).

The production of building a car, Chris Glover told University of Tennessee at Chattanooga students, is a symphony of multiple disciplines working in great harmony to produce a product.

“It’s a synthesis of mechanical, electrical, electronic, chemical engineering, software engineering, digitalization, automation systems. It’s all embedded in what we do on a daily basis,” said Glover, CEO and president of Volkswagen Group of America Chattanooga Operations. “Beyond that, all the way around, you have all the support services. You’ve heard from many of them today: purchasing, logistics, supply department, communications, sales, finance, everybody geared towards getting this great big machine to run.

Chris Glover

“At the end of the day, it’s a symphony. It’s a symphony of all of the engineering disciplines all combined into a process which generates the most aspirational, the most fascinating of products.”

On Thursday, Feb. 22, UTC hosted its first VW Drive Your Career Day, an event for students who registered to explore internship and career opportunities while networking with VW personnel.

VW staff members talked with students about positions in numerous disciplines, including innovation, finance, engineering, computer science, business and human resources. In addition, an ID.4 and the new VW bus were parked next to the silver Power C adjacent to the University Center.

Mario Duarte, VW’s senior director of culture and organizational development, provided opening remarks. Duarte, who received an MBA from UTC’s Gary W. Rollins College of Business in 2014, was recently appointed by Gov. Bill Lee to the UTC Advisory Board.

“This is a very special day for me. It’s the first time that we have done something like this at UTC,” Duarte said, “and I am wearing my (Power C) pin very proudly to show that I’m an alum.”

As head of learning, training and development, Duarte’s work encompasses workforce, leadership and professional development.

Mario Duarte

“From developing a car to manufacturing the car, to engineering the manufacturing process, to human resources, to procurement, to sales and marketing, to distribution after sales, it’s not just about that manufacturing aspect,” Duarte said. “Of course, it’s the heart of the company and the industry—the manufacturing of an amazing car—but there’s more beyond that.

“So this is a great opportunity to talk about what a career at Volkswagen means.”

Duarte said that coming to campus allowed VW employees to talk to students “not just about what Volkswagen is right now, but what it’s going to continue to be in the North American market.”

“Everything around the operations that happen in Chattanooga will be the heart of Volkswagen—the North American strategy,” he said. “We’re definitely in growth mode in North America, the region and in Chattanooga, so I want to make sure the students get to know that.”

VW personnel making presentations to the students in the University Center Chattanooga Room included:

Hendrik Mainka, VW’s university liaison and head of Innovation Hub Knoxville.
Matthew Addison, chassis engineering lead. Addison, who talked about the U.S. engineering hub, is a 2013 UTC alum with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
Pedro Jusino, connected infotainment function development engineer.
Trevor Wilcox, electrical engineering specialist and a member of the high voltage battery team. Wilcox is a current UTC student pursuing a master’s in electrical engineering.
Tyler Fricks, technical project lead.
Justin Rehagen, assistant manager of assembly planning, talked about the Chattanooga plant. Rehagen received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from UTC in 2012.
Ricardo Arcila Vélez, group quality.
Daniel Vonthin, project purchasing – project lead.
Harrison Hawthorne, procurement lead – logistics and a 2016 UTC alum with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management.
Katelyn Keller, value engineering project manager.

Approximately 5,500 employees work in the Chattanooga production facility. Models produced include the Volkswagen ID.4, the Volkswagen Atlas and the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport.

“The amazing thing is that, as you’ve seen today, right on the doorstep of your University here in Chattanooga, we have a huge car plant producing world-class cars and offering wonderful career opportunities for anybody who is interested to come out and join us,” said Glover, who has worked for VW for 41 years—a career with stints in six countries and five continents.

“I really hope that some of you will follow in my footsteps—and maybe even one of you will be standing in front of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 30-to-40 years telling your story to a bunch of aspiring young students.”