Innovation

First of all, great innovations were implemented in the process of cars’ production. The Group is committed to the C02 target of the Paris Climate Agreement, so by 2050, Volkswagen Group wants to become net carbon neutral. It is a very high aim, and it requires a lot of efforts to make. This ambition for climate protection is also a core part of “goTOzero” environmental mission statement, which stands for a net carbon-free way of doing business. First of all, the company replaced all equipment and lighting with more economical options several years ago. Special employees strictly monitor the energy consumption in the production process, the process continues to be automated. In addition, a study was recently conducted that plastic is the most carbon-neutral material in existence, therefore, whenever possible, all machine components are now trying to be made of this material. It is also planned to use solar energy in the future, but so far it is too expensive for the company.

Talking about recycling, the Volkswagen Group has already developed plans for recycling and reusing vehicle parts in order to reduce its own environmental footprint and cultivate circular business models. An additional driver of the circular economy is the ongoing decarbonization of the Group: the growing use of secondary materials and the establishment of closed materials loops help to significantly reduce its CO2 emissions. Recycling and re-using the material in car production is truly an important step that the company takes consciously.

Next changes are happening in supply chains management and relationships with partners: the Volkswagen Group is fully committed to corporate responsibility in its business relationships and in its business units and at our sites. It carries whether all process during the production to end-user are sustainable and contribute to economic growth. To this end, the Group is establishing a strong business and human rights management system, promoting equality in all spheres.

Process of hiring people and HR-management in a whole also were changed. The Group commenced the transformation of its workforce systematically at the start of 2020- with increased training budgets, with training for the whole workforce where conventional plants are transformed into plants for electric vehicles, with systematic research on the employment policy consequences of e-mobility and digitalization and with further expansion of strategic staff planning.

Inspiration

The ability to inspire others is cited as one of the most important attributes and it’s especially true in an increasingly complex industry, in which product development relies on a web of joint ventures and simultaneous engineering projects involving competitors and suppliers.

At the same time the effective leader of tomorrow needs to combine both strategic and operational capability and be able to "switch focus" rapidly between the two.

"To deal effectively with increasing levels of disruptive industry change, we - automakers and suppliers-, need a talent strategy that, at its core, seeks to identify and to develop leaders equipped with the requisite skills and capabilities. That talent strategy must be clearly aligned with a company’s strategic objectives and the organization’s culture."

But now, change occurs more quickly and less predictably. New challenges can come out of left field, and the agile leader must be able to react, even if there is no obvious framework of experience to rely on.

“The challenge is to find those people who can manage daily operations while having a clear vision of the future. It is no longer enough to be one or the other. You have to be able to do both.”

There is no question that automotive businesses need to adapt, and to do so just as quickly as their customers are shifting their relationships with transportation and mobility. Consumer demand is one of the major forces driving industry change, and that demand differs greatly around the world, increasing the need for leaders with true cultural adaptability, not just an international CV.

Overall impact

The overall significance of the innovation is difficult to assess, since it affected not only the company's policies, its corporate culture, but also the outside world.

Speaking of short-term effects, production has become more energy-efficient, new materials are used, including recycled ones. This made production cheaper, but at the same time more conscious. In addition, the composition of partners and companies in the production chain has changed, and cooperation has become closer and more productive for all parties. The workforce has become more diverse both in terms of gender and age, employees have the opportunity to learn and develop professionally.

In the long term, all the previously described effects are expected to increase. Leaner manufacturing can make a company a market leader as more and more conscious consumers are growing. With the development of the scientific direction, perhaps. new materials will appear that will reduce the cost of production and reduce costs. By 2050, the company will have cut its carbon footprint completely.

Company values, which now incorporate ever-new UN goals, will rally staff, reduce staff turnover and make the company more attractive to new people. In turn, high-quality HR management will only reinforce this effect. The company will also be able to help other companies in the same field or its partners also move to conscious manufacturing, in this way. making the whole automotive business better not only in Russia, but also abroad.

Business benefit

Thousands of people world-wide have become involved in this campaign, they were inspired and motivated to become involved. Through this campaign people began to see the need for action and began to take it in various individual forms. Many responded by purchasing a ‘innovative product’ designed by Volkswagen. About 12% of new customers made the decision to buy a car because of its eco-performance and long-term commitment to protecting the environment.

All of the required objectives of this campaign were met, in fact the global response of this campaign exceeded all expectations on a phenomenal level. Overall this integrated marketing campaign has been a major success as not only was the key message received by the target audience, it was achieved through a campaign like no other, one that is wholly unique, engaging and relevant to the message itself. Sales increased by 4 % after the launch of a global advertising campaign

Social and environmental benefit

A mobile application, Think Blue Trainer helps drivers to drive in a more fuel-efficient way. It can be used on mobile devices- but it is intended to be used via the onboard infotainment touchscreen.

The way it works is it monitors the state of the vehicle’s engine and uses this information to deliver real-time instruction on how to drive in a more fuel-efficient way. In short, if you are in the wrong gear for a given speed, the app will direct you to shift to the appropriate gear when driving a manual transmission. As you travel along, you will see gear shift suggestions in the center circle which will read “3>4,” which means you should shift from third to fourth gear. When the driver completes a suggested gear shift, the app will make a pleasing bell sound! In an automatic, gentle pressure on the accelerator and maintaining a constant speed is the key to a better Blue Score.

VW’s Think Blue Trainer will hand out driving hints such as reduce idling, close windows or switch drive modes for better efficiency. In the center of the display is an efficiency gauge which slowly fills up the more economically you are driving. When you are driving at optimal efficiency, the word “eco” appears in the center of the display, and the efficiency bar will continue to fill up. On the left-hand side of the display is a circle that rates driving efficiency, which the app refers to as your “Blue Score.” The circle on the right side of the display gives you miles per gallon.

In addition to VW’s eco-friendly production policies and Think Blue Trainer app, the brand is promoting sustainable transportation assets in a number of cities. These include the creation of city-wide bicycle fleets, new cycle paths and large cycling events in European cities. In the final analysis, VW has made itself a global leader in the push for sustainable production of capital assets. The Think Blue Trainer certainly helps with the ecological target, while providing a valuable money-saving product to their customers.

SDG 7 Affordable and clean energy.

The Volkswagen Group has already developed plans for recycling and reusing vehicle parts in order to reduce its own environmental footprint and cultivate circular business models. An additional driver of the circular economy is the ongoing decarbonization of the Group: the growing use of secondary materials and the establishment of closed materials loops help to significantly reduce its CO2 emissions.

The Volkswagen Group is pursuing what probably ranks as the most comprehensive electric strategy in the global automotive industry. Over the next five years, the Group will be investing around €52 billion in the development and production of new electric vehicles. The strategy also covers the development of the new business fields batteries, charging and clean energy.

The carmaker uses a number of plastic parts for its cars made from recycled waste that comes from end-of-life car parts that are generated during production. This is either 100% recycled material or a part made with some “virgin material” (new, unused material). In some models, this is how exterior covers for the chassis, wheel arches, engine or water drainage channel under the windscreen are made. For these parts, recycled materials from used car battery covers are reused. Other examples include interior carpets on the floors and in the luggage compartment and mats, which are largely made from recycled plastic bottles. Technical Development boffins are also exploring the possibility that fibers extracted from unused parts of coconut, flax, beet or coffee grounds could be used as a filler for plastics. The overriding objective is in all this is to conserve natural

In the long term, Volkswagen wants to recycle about 97 percent of all raw materials in the battery packs. Today, it’s roughly 53 percent, and the plant in Salzgitter expects to raise it further to about 72 percent. Volkswagen expects the plant in Salzgitter to be followed in the next few years by further decentralized recycling plants. Given how many electric vehicles Volkswagen plans to sell, handling recycling internally will be a priority for cost and environmental reasons — even though it will be at least a decade before the battery shredders have much to do.

Interview

Alexander Kochetkov, Director of Volkswagen, Avilon AG