Federico Kochlowski was brought in to serve as the vice president of operations for the Mercedes-Benz U.S. International (MBUSI) plant in Tuscaloosa in November 2023.
Just seven months later — in the midst of a United Auto Workers campaign to convince plant workers to unionize and MBUSI efforts to make changes to appease workers — Kochlowski was tapped to become the new president and CEO of the plant. He had previously served as CEO at the joint Mercedes and Nissan plant in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
As he took the new position in May, Kochlowski reached out to workers in person and via letter. He asked that they give him a chance to make things better at the plant in the days before those workers ended up voting against United Auto Workers representation.
Kochlowski has followed up on his promises. “We have made a realignment and restart on the deployment of mission, vision and values,” he says. “Our key focus is the entire MBUSI team — not results for the sake of results. Results matter, but they shall be delivered from work with strong orientation to people, processes and leadership based on a solid foundation of core values (safety, quality and integrity).”
Safety is critical because without it, no business can survive, Kochlowski says, and quality relies on a “continuous pursuit of excellence in everything we do to meet and exceed expectations from customers.”
His emphasis on relationships to employees, suppliers and customers depends on integrity, he says, based on “transparency, commitment and teamwork.”
His vision for the plant includes a greater focus on workers as well as the work. “The vision of MBUSI is to be a great employer; a place where people value to belong and work; and a place they can call home,” he says. “Regarding Quality: For MBUSI to be the reference and a benchmark given by the feedback from the market.”
As the leader of the operation, Koslowski takes the role seriously. “The key intended contribution from my end has been to set the understanding of the expectations for the future on the products we build, our collective goals as the great organization MBUSI is, and to foster teamwork internally and with suppliers.”
After graduating in industrial engineering from the Catholic University Cordoba in Argentina in 1994, Kochlowski rose up through the ranks first at Chrysler in Argentina, then at Daimler Chrysler Tech Center in Michigan before earning his Executive MBA from Michigan State University in 2003.
He then did an 11-year stint at Beijing Benz Automotive Co. Ltd., eventually serving as the vice president of manufacturing engineering. He joined the Aguascalientes, Mexico, plant in 2019 as director of production operations and the next year began serving as CEO.
Of his rich and varied international career, Koslowski says, “Besides the industrial engineering degree and the MBA at Michigan State, the continued education inside Mercedes-Benz has been a key factor to learn and prepare for new responsibilities and also different scope and functions. That part of the education provided the knowledge and technical skills. The opportunities to work in different projects and countries provided the learning and experience regarding culture, people, teams and cross-functional work.”
His multi-cultural experiences have not only augmented his career, he says, but also have shaped his thinking, principles and beliefs. “The understanding of what is important in each country and culture is instrumental to create a sense of belonging, alignment and teamwork,” Kochlowski says.
“It is also important when considering and planning on how to develop employees in a career. However, even with culture differences, in every country, it is clear that people place significant value on openness, teamwork, support and a future on the career at work. Development and recognition go a long way for each individual employee.”
He remembers a particularly significant growth experience in China when he was a part of a team tasked to create a brand-new plant. “We were a very diverse team with colleagues from over 10 nationalities, two companies, including government participation, a new and young workforce, a very tight timeline and high expectations from the market,” he says. “Working on building the team, reaching alignment and holding ourselves accountable made it possible.”
Kochlowski applauds his Alabama team members for their hospitality, openness, respect and willingness to pull together.
“We are in challenging times, and it has been proven several times that when we need to come together to overcome hurdles, the team does it without hesitation,” he says. “The spirit of people in Alabama is the most valuable.”
Upcoming challenges include the economy, both national and international, as a significant part of the plant’s production is for export markets, Kochlowski says. MBUSI is one of the largest automotive exporters in the United States. “We are also preparing the plant for new projects and renewing facilities and processes while we are running production,” he says. “This preparation for the future also entails the learning and implementation of new technologies and digitalization.”
Kathy Hagood is a Homewood-based freelance contributor to Business Alabama.
This article appears in the February 2025 issue of Business Alabama.
