‘A little more Silicon Valley coupled with German competence’: Volkswagen starts up new brand mindset
Volkswagen is realigning strategically and technologically to clean up its tarnished brand following the emissions scandal, revealing plans to up its digital spend in a bid to become more transparent.
A ‘chain of mistakes’ and a mindset that tolerated cheating led to the emissions rigging, admitted the car maker after concluding the investigation into a scandal that has shredded its reputation. This was not a one-time error, confessed chairman of the board management Hans Dieter Potsch yesterday (10 December) and in order to weed out that deep-rooted issue the business is taking on a new mindset that will be powered by what it calls a "digitalisation and electrification offensive”.
Volkswagen is in desperate need of some forward thinking and while it’s not yet clear what this so called “digitisation offensive” will entail, it's adamant that it will expand sales beyond its core business and help it recapture the “right attitude and mentality”. All will become clearer mid 2016 when the brand presents its ‘Strategy 2025’ roadmap, which will be about outlining how it will become more open to discussions, foster closer cooperation, and embrace a willingness to allow mistakes if they are understood as an opportunity to learn.
In short: the future at Volkswagen "belongs to the bold", claimed chief executive Matthias Mueller, who was promoted to the role to rescue the brand. “We need a little more Silicon Valley, coupled with the competence from Wolfsburg, Ingolstadt, Stuttgart, and the other Group locations,” he added.
“We don’t need yes-men, but managers and engineers who make good arguments in support of their convictions and projects, who think and act like entrepreneurs. I am calling for people who are curious, independent, and pioneering. People who follow their instincts and are not merely guided by the possible consequences of impending failure.”
This transition will be channelled through a more decentralised structure that will place more responsibility on its brands and markets. This leaner structure will also improve cost efficiencies when it's put in place by the start of 2017, Volkswagen said.
“We are doing everything to overcome the current situation, but we will not allow the crisis to paralyse us. On the contrary, we will use it as a catalyst to make the changes Volkswagen needs,” continued Mueller.
The car maker’s recall process in Europe starts next month when it will notify European customers of the fix, though tackling the issue in the US will take longer due to stricter emissions requirements.
Trust in Volkswagen’s brand is in freefall at the moment, pushing its marketers into rebuild mode that will need to rethink what its cars stand for after it admitted to cheating exhaust tests for its diesel cars. Volkswagen estimates that as many as 11 million of its vehicles worldwide have been affected after admitting it used software to deceive US regulators measuring toxic emissions in some of its diesel cars.
To prevent this happening again, the German automaker will task an independent auditor with the responsibility of emissions testing as it looks to restore the trust customers, dealers and regulators have lost in its brand.