Thanks!

A Wednesday very much like today - exactly 42 years, 11 months and 20 days ago - was my first day of work here. At that time it was still Daimler-Benz. For the past 13 years I’ve been the CEO of Daimler. Today was my last day.

The automobile, the automotive industry and Daimler as a company have changed a lot during this time. I’ve always tried to be true to myself. Even visually.

The fact that Daimler is, in so many ways, farther along today than ever before is due to the tremendous performance of generations of dedicated employees. I consider it a privilege that I was allowed to help shape Daimler’s path for more than four decades.

I would therefore like to thank all of my colleagues for their enthusiasm and tireless dedication.

Our founders moved far more than people and goods with the invention of the automobile. If we want to change the world today - and for the better - then Daimler must continue to change.

Daimler is a different company today than it was 10 years ago. It will be yet another company 10 years from now. And there are a number of good reasons why I’m very confident when it comes to this transformation.

I’m firmly convinced that Ola K?llenius is the right person to successfully lead our company into the future.

I’ll be watching this with a bit more distance. Although Daimler has always been more than just a job for me, I can hardly wait to have more time for everything I’ve had too little time for in recent years. Foremost is my family. And I really look forward to that.