After more than seventeen years of leadership, AIAG CEO J. Scot Sharland has retired, paving the way for global supply chain executive P. Matthew Pohlman to support the AIAG team and mobility sector moving forward.

SOUTHFIELD, Michigan, August 1, 2022 – The Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) today announced the appointment of its new Chief Executive Officer, P. Matthew Pohlman. Pohlman joins the team in response to AIAG CEO Emeritus J. Scot Sharland’s retirement after more than seventeen years at the organization’s helm.

Under Sharland’s leadership, AIAG membership increased exponentially to its current count of more than 4,000 member companies, including the latest innovators in automotive, electric and autonomous vehicles, military, aerospace, heavy equipment, electronics, semiconductors, and more. Sharland also worked diligently with internal and external teams alike to create additional opportunities and resources for future industry professionals and smaller suppliers, and to extend AIAG’s presence and support in the southeast United States, Mexico, and around the globe.

“I am truly excited about AIAG’s future and cognizant of the fact that the AIAG experience will, and needs to be, very much different than it is today,” notes J. Scot Sharland, CEO Emeritus. “Great organizations don’t look back...they evolve and move forward faster, and Matt Pohlman is the right guy to take AIAG to the next level.”

With his entire career to date in the automotive industry, Pohlman brings a wealth of experience in virtually all areas of supply chain management – including supplier quality, manufacturing, production control, distribution, purchasing, sales and marketing, reverse logistics, customs, and even last mile delivery to retail stores.

Beginning at Federal-Mogul, Pohlman initially directed North American Field Operations out of Detroit, before relocating overseas as General Director of European Logistics. In the early 2000s, Pohlman accepted a new opportunity at Delphi Automotive, where he oversaw the Delphi Product & Service Solutions Division’s global supply chain of 22 warehouse locations and several hundred staff around the world. He also went on to serve as the organization’s Vice President of Integrated Supply Chain in Luxembourg for approximately four years, and most recently worked for Icahn Automotive, WABCO/ZF Group, and First Brands Groups, LLC, in various senior executive roles.

Pohlman explains: “For the past thirty-eight years, I have been involved with the global automotive industry at both the domestic and international level, across all facets of the supply chain. I have also lived and worked in the U.S., England, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Canada – all of which has allowed me to develop a unique perspective that I look forward to sharing with the AIAG team, our volunteers and members, and the automotive and mobility industries more broadly.”

Prior to joining AIAG, Pohlman also served on the Board of Directors for the Motor & Equipment Remanufacturers Association (MERA) from 2011-2013 and AIAG Board of Directors from 2015-2017, and is currently a Board member for the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), Eastern Michigan (Great Lakes) Roundtable. Pohlman will also be assuming J. Scot Sharland’s position on the International Automotive Oversight Bureau (IAOB) Board of Directors at the end of 2022. 

Moving forward, as he takes on new challenges and opportunities at AIAG, Pohlman concludes: “I am excited to be leading such an important professional organization – which I’ve been associated with for many years now – and eager to explore new opportunities to grow and transform AIAG in response to industry needs. As the automotive and mobility industries continue to evolve, we are already working to set the tone for future innovation and expansion, and look forward to offering even more value to members and non-members alike.” 

About AIAG

The Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) is a unique not-for-profit organization where OEMs, suppliers, service providers, government entities, and individuals in academia have worked together for 40 years to drive down costs and complexity from the automotive supply chain. With more than 4,000 member companies, AIAG provides a legal, non-competitive forum for collaboration on innovative solutions to common industry issues. https://www.aiag.org/