Content by The Buzz Business Mobility
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Women drive change in global car industry
While new inventions such as robotics and artificial intelligence grab all the headlines, a social revolution that is giving women increased economic power is also transforming many global industries. Carmakers are responding proactively to these trends, promoting women to senior positions and putting them at the heart of their marketing efforts, as well as increasing investments in technological innovations.
“ Women make 80 % of the purchase decisions for cars, so we need to be closer to them, to understand what they need and what they are looking for,” asserts Mayra González, president and managing director of Nissan Mexico. González is the first female executive at Nissan ever to be appointed president of a country and the youngest person to assume the position.“ We are now more conscious about the importance of women in the auto industry, not only as a customer but also inside the industry,” she reveals.
There is a clear business rationale behind encouraging diversity in the Alliance. It’ s not just about checking boxes.” Mayra González, President and Managing Director, Nissan Mexico
Carlos Ghosn, the chairman and CEO of the Renault- Nissan Alliance, has made it a strategic priority for both member companies to increase the diversity of their workforce.“ Having such a strong tone from the top has helped us build our Women @ Renault network, which is increasing the self-confidence of our women, developing their skills and giving them access to senior roles,” says Clotilde Delbos, Executive VP and CFO at Groupe Renault.“ We believe that diversity and inclusion is a competitive advantage,” González adds.
At Renault, innovation is not limited to electric vehicles( EVs), connected cars and autonomous driving but extends across the
Left: Mayra González, President and Managing Director, Nissan Mexico. Right: Clotilde Delbos, Executive VP and CFO, Renault; Chair of the Board, RCI Banque
corporation. As chair of the board of RCI Banque, the company’ s car finance unit, Delbos is tasked with developing innovative financial services that strengthen the loyalty of Renault customers.“ There are not many industries that are going to be disrupted as much as the automotive and banking sectors,” Delbos declares.“ I have the luxury of looking at both of them, developing digital financial services and also mobility services such as car sharing.”
Delbos and González have assumed leadership positions at a time of major market growth for both brands, as Ghosn’ s strategy delivers on its targets. Renault has reported market share gains across Europe with popular new product designs. At the same time, it has achieved rapid growth in emerging markets like India, thanks to innovative and affordable vehicles designed for the local environment such as the KWID.
In Mexico, Nissan has been the market leader for seven consecutive years and enjoys a share of 25 %. González, who in her previous role as vice
president of sales and marketing spearheaded this growth, is aiming for a record level of sales in this fiscal year: 400,000 cars, up from 355,000 sold in 2015.
Nissan is also ramping up its production in Mexico, where it has been present for more than 50 years. In 2017, with the start of operations at a new $ 1 billion plant in a joint venture with Daimler, Nissan will produce over 1 million cars in the country.“ Our manufacturing footprint, our products, our finance company and our dealership network give us the formula for success,” González says.
For both partners in the Renault- Nissan Alliance, electric vehicles are some of the fastest-selling products in their range. The Nissan Leaf is the world’ s most popular EV, with
For Karl-Thomas Neumann,
CEO of the Opel Group, there is no room for doubt: autonomous driving and electric vehicles are more than just buzzwords or passing fads. They represent a future that is arriving faster than many in the industry realize.
“ I am sure that the autonomous vehicle will come— and it will come even faster than some people think,” he says.“ We are not all that far away from autonomous driving in everyday life. According to even the most conservative forecasts, in 15 years the penetration of autonomous vehicles will be at 15 % to 20 %. more than 230,000 units sold since its launch in 2010. Meanwhile, Renault reached the milestone of its 100,000th EV sale in 2016; the company has a strong line-up of EVs, including the Renault Zoe, the top-selling electric car in Europe. Between them, the Alliance partners have now sold more than 375,000 electric vehicles.
We have decided that we need to increase R & D expenses in order to prepare for future disruption.” Clotilde Delbos, Executive VP and CFO, Renault
“ We are investing in the future and increasing our spending on R & D,” Renault’ s Delbos says.“ There are a lot of challenges facing the industry, such as the arrival of autonomous driving, connectivity and mobility as a service. Our job is to be prepared for that future.”
Say goodbye to the steering wheel
“ In 2030, we could see cars that don’ t even have steering wheels anymore. The automotive industry is in the midst of the biggest transformation in its history.” In 2016, Opel’ s parent company, General
Motors, established a separate business unit for autonomous vehicle development and acquired Cruise Automation, a software company that specializes in self-driving vehicle technology. Opel also launched the Ampera-e electric car, which with a range of over 400 kilometers promises to eradicate range anxiety once and for all.