1. Objectives

A major player in the automotive industry sought to investigate the feasibility, concept, and ramp-up of a new Business Unit spanning across several subsidiaries. The intention was to realize cost and revenue synergies across the subsidiaries while harmonizing and optimizing the sales and operations approach on a global scale. A key prerequisite was to establish consistent profit and loss responsibility and create an organizational and governance structure that would allow them to effectively manage the new Business Unit.

2. Approach

Our first task involved defining the scope of the Business Unit, identifying its required future capabilities, and determining the job split between the Business Unit and the subsidiaries. We then conducted a baseline analysis of the existing organizations, assessing structures, personnel capacities, capabilities, and processes.

Following this baseline analysis, we defined the detailed structure of the Business Unit and created blueprints for the subsidiaries. The concept of the new business unit was stress-tested against pre-defined success criteria. This stage also involved a review and concept adjustment with input from over 30 specialists, including lawyers and tax advisors.

We also outlined scenarios for the financial effects on the subsidiaries’ profitability. The conception of the new Business Unit management team, multi-brand supervisory board, topic-specialized committees, financial control model, and annual planning cycle were critical components of our approach.

3. Results

The new business unit received approval from the corporate and brand boards, thus establishing the new Business Unit. This resulted in an orchestrated approach and consolidation of investments to achieve the long-term profit ambition.

The transformation facilitated accelerated decision-making across the company, involved subsidiaries, and national companies. The restructuring clarified decision allocation to roles, the Business Unit Management Team, committees, and the supervisory board.

Ultimately, the implementation resulted in improved management and an optimized organizational blueprint for national companies. This case study demonstrates the power of meticulous organization and planning in the successful establishment and management of a significant Business Unit within a highly dynamic and competitive industry.