The European automotive industry is currently going through one of its worst periods. However, some of the causes that have led to this situation have been visible for several years, and their effects were bound to emerge sooner or later. Below we list some of the reasons that, from our point of view, are causing the automotive and other industries to lose competitiveness:
Lack of results
Work without clear, result-oriented objectives — focused on time rather than outcomes — is key to understanding the loss of competitiveness in large and medium-sized companies. In our view, a working hour consists of both productive and non-productive time. Non-productive work has increased over the years for various reasons, leading to working hours that are increasingly inefficient. Some of these reasons include lack of motivation, lack of necessity, and working conditions that are increasingly focused on employee comfort and political correctness.
Lack of meritocracy
Without fair individual compensation based on results and objectives, hard-working, ambitious, and proactive people lose interest and motivation in their jobs. Moreover, without meritocracy, the structure within a company or department becomes politicized and inefficient. This lack of meritocracy tends to benefit those who are more complacent.
Bureaucracy
Politicized and inefficient companies or departments tend to become bureaucratic and generate inefficiencies, forgetting about objectives they neither know how nor are able to achieve.
Lack of responsibility
People who work in bureaucratic and inefficient environments tend to dilute or even ignore their responsibilities (if they were ever assigned any in the first place). On an individual level, a person who feels secure in their job regardless of their performance tends to lose their sense of responsibility. On a corporate level, a company that faces no risk — and therefore feels no pressure to act responsibly (for example, because it will be bailed out through external aid, or because it can continue living off past success) — will tend to become inefficient.
Lack of innovation
Likewise, a lack of responsibility leads to an aversion to risk-taking, preventing the creation of new and more efficient solutions.
Marketing above product
Inefficiency and lack of ideas often lead to focusing on new ways to market and sell a product rather than improving or adapting the product to market needs.
Increased competition
As in any market — and especially in an increasingly globalized one — the lack of products that meet the needs of new customers opens the door to new players who succeed in fulfilling those needs.
At Kentia, we believe that a culture based on responsibility, innovation, and results is not necessarily incompatible with flexible working conditions. Having identified these and other issues, we have built a team that is experienced, responsible, and competitive, committed to providing solutions that are adapted to real needs — efficient and innovative — while never losing sight of our primary focus: our responsibilities and results toward our clients.
