Competition in the automotive industry is intensifying and brands are competing on more fronts than at any time in history. Of course, price, performance, brand, and residual values continue to be important. But as the industry gravitates toward electrification and software-defined vehicles, customers are looking at what else their vehicles can do for them. How well do they integrate with their lives and their digital ecosystems? Can and will the car evolve over time to add more value to daily life? And, for manufacturers, how do you build supply chain resilience and competitiveness to address these evolving demands, while ensuring availability and affordability? 

Automakers – especially at the luxury and premium end of the market – are also intensifying their focus on providing assisted and autonomous driving capabilities and new ways to add value with digital experiences, inside and outside the vehicle. In the face of increased competition, the speed with which automakers are able to innovate and the extent to which they can engage and satisfy their customers in new ways will be crucial to future success or failure.

Autonomous mobility at the crossroads

For years, tech and innovation events like CES have been dominated by autonomous vehicles of all shapes and sizes. The technology is always impressive … at the shows. But, in the real world, progress has been slower than expected. For every success, it seems like there’s been at least one story of a scaled-back or canceled investment, an unfulfilled promise, or a serious safety scare.

The pursuit of autonomous mobility is a double-edged sword. The cost of adding sensors for 20+ detection zones around the car is significant. And the volumes of data, the sophistication of algorithms, and the amount of computing power required to develop, test, and validate systems are eye-watering. And yet, the ability to offer customers safe and stress-free ways to travel; to give back quality time while getting from A to B, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build trust and open the door to a whole new world of services and revenue streams. It’s no wonder the pursuit of the various certification levels is so intense and why so many companies are taking different routes – from in-house development with tech partners to major alliances with tier-1 suppliers, and even acquisitions. Some companies are making more progress than others, but the race is still wide open.

The in-car experience is evolving

The transition to electric and the pursuit of autonomous-driving capabilities have major implications for the automotive customer experience, especially the in-car digital experience. With electric vehicles, we know that recharging away from home will involve idle time. And – though it may still be a way off – autonomous mobility will allow us to focus less on driving the car and leave us more time to do other things. Today, our first thought might be to reach for our smartphones or tablets, but this is a lost opportunity for vehicle manufacturers.

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And so the question becomes: How can your car keep you entertained and engaged while it charges or self-drives?

The answers are emerging in the form of expansive screens, adaptive interfaces, the addition of extra screens for passengers, an increasing emphasis on in-car gaming, content consumption, subscription services, and almost unlimited ways to pass the time productively, recreationally, or relaxingly in a vehicle.

And then there’s the potential to have an AI-powered assistant, or companion, that connects all the different services and is capable of providing pretty much any information you need about your journey, your agenda, upcoming commitments, highlights from your inbox or social media feed, and much more.

All of these features represent potential points of differentiation, and many of them are revenue-generating opportunities (e.g. subscription-based services). Beyond direct revenue and new levels of customer intimacy, in-car digital interactions also create opportunities to generate new data and insights, which can (with the right levels of consent and anonymity, of course) be used to shape new products and services – inside and outside the vehicle – and new monetization opportunities.

Speed and satisfaction – why they matter more than ever

You could argue that the evolutions I’ve explored above are technology trends, much like many others. However, these trends are different in that if you can achieve the combination of safe autonomous or highly assisted mobility and engage customers with compelling in-car experiences, you can gain a level of trust, and access – and even companionship – that is unprecedented in the history of OEM-customer relationships. This brings with it the opportunity to develop deeper, longer, and more lucrative relationships.

But the race for the hearts and minds of customers is intense, with a raft of new players (many from China) to compete against, new demographics, and rapidly evolving customer expectations. In this climate of increased competition, it is imperative that automotive companies intensify their innovation efforts in a bid to deliver the integrated and connected customer experience that will soon be taken for granted. And if your brand isn’t able to provide it, you can assume that another one will. 

Balancing the need for speed and satisfaction with a ‘zero compromise’ approach to safety and security

Against this backdrop of ultra-intense competition and a relentless focus on innovation, OEMs must remain vigilant and understand that speed to market can never take priority over safety and security.

Assisted and autonomous mobility can offer comfortable, convenient, and stress-free travel. But they also mean taking a significant degree of responsibility for the safety of vehicle occupants. In short, ADAS and autonomous driving systems cannot fail. Failures will result in more than a few lost sales – they could lead to loss of life, high-profile court cases, and a complete loss of confidence in your brand.

And though it’s less likely to be a life-or-death matter, automotive brands need to be vigilant about ensuring the cybersecurity of their vehicles and data ecosystems. Digital assistance or companionship, subscriptions, services, integrated payment solutions and ecosystem services (e.g. via wearable health devices, smartphones, etc.) will typically require some degree of data sharing. This opens the door for personalization and seamlessly convenient experiences, but it’s not without its risks. No brand wants to be the next one to appear in a high-profile data leak story and risk losing the hard-earned trust of its customers.

Software is the key to safe, secure, and satisfying experiences

So what’s the key to accelerating innovation cycles and customer satisfaction without compromising on safety and data security?

The answer lies in your software strategy. After all, software is at the heart of assisted and autonomous driving systems, it drives immersive and engaging digital experiences through infotainment systems and more, and it can be the key to ensuring the security of personal data and the identification and elimination of sophisticated cybersecurity threats. The right software strategy and architecture (i.e. a simplified one) can also provide you with greater flexibility during times of supply chain instability, meaning you can maintain product availability while your competition potentially suffers. As many of us learned during the pandemic, simply making sure your cars are available to potential buyers can be the biggest advantage of all.

But the stakes are too high with software and the task of transforming into a software company is too big to go it alone. Here are three ways automotive companies can get their transformation right.

1. Partner up to boost software capabilities

Software-driven transformation is a broad and deep-reaching process, which can encompass upskilling your existing team, building new capabilities, and finding the right balance between maintaining your existing digital products and developing new ones. This is a huge undertaking, and so it makes sense to partner up with automotive software specialists and engineers who can share and instill industry best practices, build dedicated software factories for you, or support you in maintaining existing products or developing new ones.

2. Use cloud, virtualization, and AI to achieve more

Cloud and AI can be used to process and analyze the high volumes of data produced during autonomous driving system development and testing, to virtualize ECUs, and to support data spaces and service ecosystems. These technologies, combined with the suite of automotive-specific accelerators being built by hyperscalers today, can supercharge your innovation and product development cycles, enabling you to get to market faster with new products and services, while keeping your – and your customers’ – valuable data secure. 

3. Look for external inspiration

Automotive companies can’t be everything to everybody. It’s difficult (impossible?) to develop an infotainment UX that rivals that of smartphone makers like Apple and Google if it’s not your core business. Likewise, you won’t suddenly create ‘killer’ content and entertainment options if you’re just starting out. Instead, partner up with startups and niche players in differentiating domains and focus on the bigger picture.

The road ahead is filled with complexity and exciting developments. And yet, for all the focus on new technology, there are still large groups of customers who care little for new tech, and who continue to value practicality, build quality, and affordability above all else. How organizations address these oft-divergent customer desires within their product portfolio will be a challenge for many ‘traditional’ OEMs.

What we can say with confidence is that mobility experiences of the future – whether they’re autonomous or human-driven – must be satisfying, safe, and secure. Automotive companies must be quick to give their customers what they want. Check out our perspective on software in automotive to learn more. 

If the CRM system is used by Marketing, Sales and Service in isolation, it will be difficult to keep the recently won customers in the long term

We observe that the customer relationship management (CRM) system is not used efficiently and in a scalable way in young automotive companies. If, in addition, there is a drop in growth rates – which is to be expected in times of high inflation and the threat of recession – the advantage in terms of customer relations compared with the established automotive OEMs can shrink and even become a problem that jeopardizes the company’s existence. This is because, unlike the traditional companies, the new players do not yet have the same level of customer loyalty, which sometimes makes customers overlook poor experiences in marketing, sales and service. Weaknesses in the CRM system and poor customer experiences therefore have an even greater impact.

Based on our market observations and experience, we have identified the following barriers that hinder sustainable growth:

Lack of company-wide standards for CRM core functionalities

Long-term planning on the right CRM usage is a major challenge for growing automotive companies and can be seen among various players:

1. Joint Ventures often build on the existing CRM systems of the parent companies. However, the potential advantage that exists at first glance is often associated with system-related legacy issues.
2. Start-ups with a newly built CRM often had too little capacity to focus on the optimal set-up of the CRM system due to the initial focus on sales.

Instead of achieving a cross-functional further development of CRM and using synergies, ad hoc adjustments are usually made where it seems most necessary. However, these are often not compatible with the requirements of other departments. To prevent this, it is crucial to define company-wide standards and to align the CRM system with these standards in the long term right from the start.

Fragmented view of the customer

Most young companies repeat the mistakes of their predecessors and replace their early agility with typical silos in marketing, sales, and service. The result: fragmented customer experiences and an incoherent view of the customer due to inconsistent data flow. So why not leverage the agile strengths that a young company brings?

Unclear responsibilities in lead management

When it comes to realizing lead management, not only established OEMs are disappointing but also almost all young automotive companies. The question of who is responsible for lead management (marketing vs. sales vs. customer service vs. after-sales) should not be a “binary decision”. This way of thinking fosters silo-building so that many opportunities in lead conversion get lost or remain untapped. Instead, lead management should be the responsibility of all parties, with a clear definition of who is responsible for lead generation and lead processing. In addition, it must be clarified under which criteria a lead is handed over within the organization. This is how lead management can be optimized and the basis for effective revenue growth can be established.

When and how should the CRM be optimized?

• When: The clear answer is “NOW”. System landscapes are still lean and the spread of customer data is limited to a few systems. The growth of companies seems to be slower at the moment. This allows young automotive companies to focus on optimizing CRM.
• How: To serve customers to their best satisfaction, it is essential to offer them individual care, personalized communication across all channels, and a superior level of convenience throughout the entire customer journey. From the customer’s point of view, it is irrelevant with which internal department they are in contact. They look at the brand and the customer experience as a whole. It is therefore even more important that a unified view of the customer is achieved throughout the company.

Several CRM providers, such as Salesforce or Microsoft, offer software solutions that make it possible to achieve this target picture by using a modern, future-oriented platform. These solutions have the advantage that young automotive companies can access proven best practices and new functionalities right from the start. In addition, they can configure the CRM system specifically to individual needs.

CRM from a business perspective means: Giving more than taking!

The customer experience can be influenced by just a few CRM functionalities. For example, in addition to the customer, the respective vehicle with its details and features can also be stored in the CRM system. This provides valuable insights that help to create tailored service offers and improve customer communication. This can even be extended to household members’ vehicles to provide personalized service at the household level. In addition, fully integrated data-driven solutions can be used to generate “next best actions”, such as when is the best time to send a message to the customer regarding a potential new purchase. Salesforce provides these valuable capabilities with its Automotive Cloud, demonstrating how a variety of smart mobility solutions specifically for the automotive industry can be combined on one platform.

Finally, it should be noted that the correct use of the CRM system alone is not enough to be successful in the long term. In addition to process optimization and the introduction of the latest features, organizational processes must also be future-oriented. In this case “process-follows-system”! For young automotive companies, this means retaining the agility from their “early days” and aligning CRM with a uniform view of the customer throughout the company.

Together, we can put the customer back at the center, align CRM with the future, and thus ensure sustainable growth.

Get the future you want!

If you are a young automotive company and want to set up your CRM system in a scalable way or if you are an established company and want to benefit from our automotive-specific Salesforce experience, please contact us for more information.

Many thanks to the co-authors Florian Fuchs and Louis Fischer.

The world is changing and a combination of increased open mindedness and market forces is working to create more and more opportunities for women. Is everything perfect and can we say that IT and automotive are completely gender balanced? No, and my recent experiences of attending and speaking at events tell me that my situation is still somewhat of an exception – not many women have enjoyed the kind of support and opportunities I have. But we are on the right track.

Here are 5 reasons why …

1. Talent shortage prompts transformative action

It’s well documented that the automotive industry – like many others – is suffering from a shortage of the right tech talent. As automotive companies pursue digital transformation and as the industry focuses ever more intently on software and digitalization, it is clear that talent needs are changing. The focus is no longer predominately on mechanical engineers  – data scientists, business analysts, SAP experts, programmers … they’re all in high demand, and often departments within the same organization are competing for this same talent. For example, cloud and SAP expertise are as important to procurement and HR as they are to production and logistics.

The problem for the automotive industry is that it is not alone in feeling this need. Almost all industries are going through a similar transformation and require the same skills. This means that the automotive industry needs to step up and it needs to actively change its culture in order to appeal to potential candidates who might not traditionally consider it as a place to forge a career, i.e. women.

We definitely shouldn’t see this as a situation where more women are hired and promoted just because there is a shortage of talent – far from it. Instead, there is a shortage of top tech and multi-disciplined talent. It is this shortage that represents a fantastic opportunity for everyone who fits the bill – men and women – to take a strong first step into a career in automotive.

2. Diverse teams perform better

As the industry becomes more competitive, automotive organizations need to reflect on how they can maximize their performance. Technology can be a great enabler, but performance starts with your people, who they work with, and how they work together. Over the course of my career – which includes project and program management, capability building across geographic locations, and building and growing an entirely new business on behalf of Audi and Capgemini – I’ve observed that diverse teams perform better. What do I mean by “diverse” in this context? I mean people of different nationalities, ethnicities, professional backgrounds, cognitive profiles, age groups, and, yes, also a mix of genders.

And it’s not just my personal observation. There is a lot of research to back up this opinion.

“Gender-diverse and inclusive teams tend to outperform gender-homogeneous teams, often by as much as 50%.”

Gartner, Diversity and inclusion build high-performance teams, 2019

How does diversity help drive performance? On a project or task level, it’s about bringing multiple perspectives to the table and harnessing the best of all worlds to find the right solution to a problem. The same can be true on an organizational and team level – being able to tap into a variety of perspectives, experiences, ways of thinking, and skill sets makes you collectively stronger. Based on my own personal experience, this kind of diversity also contributes to a healthier, more satisfying place to work, which undoubtedly makes a big difference to how people and the organization perform.

Organizations are waking up to this and, thankfully, there’s a greater emphasis on diversity – especially gender diversity – in the hiring and promotion practices of companies, which means many more opportunities for women. An added benefit of this is that diversity tends to breed diversity so, once you’re on the right track, progress can be fast.

3. Mobility megatrends are not all male-dominated

The automotive industry is going through the largest transformation in its history. Electrification, digitalization, the rise of the software-defined vehicle, and the race to deliver autonomous mobility … are just some of the imperatives driving transformation. In addition, there’s stronger competition (Nǐ hǎo China!) than ever before and a strong need for established OEMs to streamline and strengthen their businesses. And if all that weren’t enough, there’s the growing need to stabilize supply chains and meet sustainability targets.

This isn’t the automotive industry your father worked in, where the main emphasis was on mechanical engineering. Today, there are so many ways for talented individuals to contribute. We need scientists to develop future generations of EV batteries. We need AI experts and data scientists to help anticipate supply chain turbulence and take remedial action. We need UX and UI designers and software developers to design and deliver new functions and features to cars. We need environmentally conscious thinkers to design products and services with circularity and sustainability in mind. We need creative thinkers and partnership builders to devise new ways to build and extend relationships between customers and their cars. The list goes on.

The key message here is that today’s automotive industry requires a far broader range of skills, profiles, and perspectives than it did just 10 or 15 years ago. And, as you see from the examples above, these aren’t all domains that are traditionally dominated by men. There’s also an argument that, as products and services become more complex, it’s increasingly important to have an inter- or multi-disciplinary skill set. In my experience, this is an area where women tend to shine (anyone for the joke about men and multitasking?).  

In short, as the automotive industry transforms, opportunities will abound for ambitious females looking to make their mark.

4. Post-pandemic appreciation for work-life balance

The pandemic caused us many difficulties and challenges. However, on reflection, many would agree that it brought about positive change in their approach to work. These days, most of us work from home for at least a few days a week. Many of us work from locations other than home or the office while travelling. It’s okay to say we can’t make a call or meeting because we have to pick up our kids. In many organizations, it’s acceptable to take a call while walking the dog. And, for most people, it’s fine to say you have a lot going on at home and could do with a little breathing space at work. These are all positive developments, many of which are a result of the constraints and difficulties we all experienced during the pandemic.

Acceptance of the need to balance our personal lives with work is definitely a good thing, but it hasn’t always been this way. Many mothers have held back from returning to work after kids or have not progressed as fast in companies due to their inability or unwillingness to ‘give’ as much of themselves at work as their male colleagues (try getting in early or staying late when you are the primary carer of young children). Now, as more of society appreciates the benefits of work-life balance and there’s more empathy in the workplace, many of the obstacles that might have kept women out of work – or from progressing – have been openly acknowledged as being challenges for both men and women. This is sparking discussion and progress toward greater equality, which is opening the door for many more women to resume or progress more quickly in their careers.

5. Role models and support networks

When I began my career in the world of automotive tech, there were precious few female role models that I could look up to, admire, and seek to follow. Yes, there were women who were successful in their professional careers, but leaders? Role models? I’m not so sure. Today, the situation is much better. No, there aren’t many female CEOs (yet) but many of the established European and North American OEM brands all have women on their senior management teams. Sure, they may still be outnumbered, but many of these women are active in championing the cause of women leaders. Most importantly, though, they demonstrate that women can reach the top in a male-dominated industry.

And while we don’t all have a direct line to the leaders at the top, we do now have solid community platforms in the form of the PANDA Women Leadership Network

 and Women Automotive Network where we can meet and hear from women of all levels from all kinds of backgrounds and domains. At Capgemini, there is a Women in Engineering network and the Capgemini Invent Female Expert Network, as well as many other local or practice-based groups for women to join and contribute to.

Having attended and spoken at several events in the last year, I’ve been taken aback by how much I have gained in terms of inspiration and advice and also how much positive feedback I’ve heard about my own story. Whereas in the past, we may have felt neglected by the lack of support structure, today, I think we can consider ourselves blessed by the networks, communities, and channels we have access to.

So, what can you do?

It may seem like now is a perfect time to be a woman in automotive. It’s not. There’s still much work to be done but the situation is improving all the time and we can all play a role in helping it to improve faster. We can connect, we can contribute to existing networks or create our own local communities. We can share our stories, we can look around for those who need a helping hand, we can provide advice to one another, and – if we’re leaders – we can make sure we are active in creating and nurturing workplace cultures and communities that support women. There is literally something that every one of us can do to pave the way for female success in the world of automotive. And, as Madeleine Albright used to say “There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women.”

Note: This blog post is based on the keynote presentation I gave at the Women Automotive Network Summit event in Stuttgart on 20 September 2023.