The automotive industry has long served as an exemplar of high-quality products and efficient processes. In recent years, however, the industry has faced increasing pressure from new competitors, fluctuating raw material prices and strict market regulations – all while customer expectations change at the fastest rate since the invention of the automobile. Buyers who used to look mainly for greater power and sophisticated mechanics are now seeking solutions that reduce fuel consumption. They’re interested in intelligent strategies related to driverless cars, digitalization and e-mobility. And they’re more interested in the experience of driving a car than in the social status of owning one.
These shifts have had immediate implications for product and production strategy, innovation management and supplier collaboration. Successful carmakers and suppliers are meeting these changing demands with new business models, greater innovation and ever-increasing efficiency.
Key questions
- How can we identify and assess the real needs of our customers, both now and in the future?
- How can cars be networked with new information technology, and how should business models change as a result?
- What is the best place to start making our processes more efficient?
- How can we produce customized products with limited resources?
- How can we accelerate production processes as well as product development?
- How can we organize and control our supplier network even more successfully?
Strategies and solutions
With a global team of experts who have deep knowledge of consulting as well as the automotive industry, Porsche Consulting brings a wealth of ideas and a pronounced focus on execution.
When companies in the automotive industry align operations with strategy, they rise above the competition. Success in many instances is determined by the extent to which a strategy is implemented throughout an organization and the extent to which managers are actively involved. To that end, we help automotive leaders create strategies at the department or division level – e.g., sales, production, development and procurement – that align with the organization’s main purpose. Each of these strategies is supported by actions, initiatives and measures, while governance ensures that they are put into practice effectively.
Successful carmakers not only involve their suppliers in the supply chain but also put the customer front and center in all of their processes. To do so, they analyze every touchpoint along the customer lifecycle and use the knowledge gained to inform the development and production of ever-more personalized products and services. The intelligent integration of modern information technologies is playing an increasingly important role in this area.
Carmakers and suppliers around the world invest more than $30 billion U.S. in research and development each year. They’re responding to customer demand for innovative products and services related to driverless cars, digitalization and e-mobility. At Porsche Consulting, we help manufacturers and suppliers set up an overarching innovation management system to increase their innovative power. Our multi-stage model covers everything from idea generation to market introduction. It creates space and structure to support innovation while enabling the creativity of the development teams. We also offer a comprehensive system for efficient planning, monitoring and controlling the product development process. This lowers costs and throughput times from the early concept stage to the final production release and buildup to peak production volumes.
To achieve long-term success, carmakers rely on a perfectly functioning organization, one characterized by smooth processes, talented employees, collaborative cross-functional teams and flat hierarchies. We help carmakers establish and refine the systems needed for a high-performance organization. With demonstrated success across a wide variety of automotive industry companies, we’ve helped drive increases in efficiency of more than 20% in addition to improvements in development and quality.
We work with clients to set up programs that increase efficiency, both directly and indirectly, and then roll out the programs across the company. In doing so, we enable automotive leaders to free resources for future investments and respond more nimbly to market changes. Our teams bring significant experience in operational implementation as well as in helping companies meet financial targets. Our highly disciplined approach to managing costs and investments is designed to ensure that the programs we implement have a measurable, visible effect on company results.
Carmakers place a high priority on optimizing their production processes and reducing waste. At Porsche Consulting, we draw on extensive industry expertise, including hands-on experience at Porsche and a deep understanding of Industry 4.0, to design more effective, efficient production processes. The use of innovative technologies, such as smart glasses employed in sophisticated order-picking processes, can raise productivity by an additional 20 to 30%, even in the highly efficient automotive industry.
Strong and efficient partners are a prerequisite for success in the automotive industry, and the ability to plan, control, measure and improve the supplier network is of critical importance. Our automotive experts understand the needs and problems of suppliers and OEMs. We help clients define and implement the best possible network structure and control system – before and after the start of production (SOP). We then apply these systems across all company processes, from development, quality management and planning to production and logistics, purchasing and controlling, for a comprehensive approach to supplier management.
Contact
Frank McCleary
Partner
Phone: +1 404-519-8146
E-Mail: Frank.McCleary@porsche-consulting.com
One Porsche Drive
Atlanta, GA 30354
USA