1. Situation

A major automotive group wanted to test, design and establish a new business unit spanning several brands and subsidiaries. The objective was to capture revenue and cost synergies while coordinating sales, operations and investment globally. The model required consistent profit-and-loss responsibility and governance that could work across existing corporate and brand boundaries.

2. Approach

We defined the scope and mandate of the new business unit, the capabilities it required and the division of responsibilities between the unit and the participating subsidiaries. A baseline assessment covered structures, personnel capacity, capabilities and core processes across the existing organizations.

The target business-unit structure and corresponding subsidiary blueprints were then developed and stress-tested against agreed success criteria. More than thirty specialists, including legal and tax advisers, contributed to the review of the concept and its implications.

The operating model covered the management team, a multi-brand supervisory board, specialist committees, financial control and the annual planning cycle. We also examined the impact on subsidiary profitability and clarified how decisions would be allocated between roles, committees, the management team and the supervisory board.

3. Result

The corporate and brand boards approved the concept, allowing the new business unit to be established. The model consolidated investments behind a shared long-term profit ambition and created clearer decision rights across the group, participating brands and national companies. It also provided a common organization blueprint for managing the activity internationally.