AGCO has announced the retirement of Richard Markwell, Vice President and Managing Director Massey Ferguson Europe/Africa/Middle East (EAME) and President of AGCO SAS in France.


Richard Markwell

Effective 1 January 2017, Thierry Lhotte is appointed to the role of Massey Ferguson Vice President and Managing Director Europe and Middle East (EME). Mr Markwell will remain as head of AGCO SAS, the Company’s French operations, until 31 March 2017.

Richard Markwell joined the Company in 1975 and has led Massey Ferguson in his current role for the last 11 years. He was instrumental in growing the MF business in EAME and, with the MF Fast Forward programme, he and his team positioned Massey Ferguson for the future with substantial margin growth and a sustainable business model. For this transformation, Mr Markwell and his team were presented with the AGCO Chairman’s Award of Excellence.

Furthermore, under his leadership, a second manufacturing plant was built at AGCO’s European base in Beauvais, France in 2013. This year, the Beauvais site, which builds MF tractors from 75-400hp, won France’s coveted Factory of the Year Award.

Thierry Lhotte, currently Vice President Marketing Massey Ferguson EAME, has worked alongside Richard Markwell for the last six years and has played a key part in driving the brand’s growth across the region. “With our full-line of award-winning farm equipment, Massey Ferguson has it best-ever product range and we will be seeking to grow our market share further in all sectors,” he says. “We have an exceptionally strong and dedicated team fully-focused on delivering the products and services farmers need to meet the challenging conditions of today’s agriculture. Investments in new product, manufacturing and customer support continue to underpin our growth strategy and development of the famous Massey Ferguson brand.”

Reporting to Rob Smith, AGCO Senior Vice President and General Manager EME, Thierry Lhotte brings a wide scope of knowledge and experience to his new position. From a farming family in Picardy, northern France, he holds a Diploma in Agriculture Engineering from the Institut Supérieur Agricole, known today as UniLaSalle in Beauvais. He joined Massey Ferguson in 1988, holding positions in Sales and Marketing including Director Sales for Massey Ferguson in France, the largest farm machinery market in Europe, and later AGCO Country Manager, France.

“We congratulate Thierry on his key new role in spearheading the advance of Massey Ferguson, AGCO’s global brand,” says Rob Smith. “AGCO would like to take this opportunity to express its sincere thanks to Richard Markwell for his outstanding contribution to the business over his 41-year career with the Company. His strong leadership, wide knowledge of our industry and wise counsel are highly valued and we wish him every success for the future.”

Mr Markwell will continue to work for AGCO in his position as President of CEMA, the European Association of Farm Machinery Manufacturers, until the end of his current mandate in July 2018.