Interview

EU Tariffs on Chinese EVs: Protective Measure or Double-Edged Sword?

Exploring Potential Impacts and Market Dynamics: An Expert Interview with Christian Zeller

The decision is final: as of late October, the EU has imposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. The reasoning? Excessive subsidies and unfair competition from China. Brussels has taken decisive action, despite strong warnings from the German automotive industry.Will the sector now face significant price increases and potential retaliatory measures from China? Could the demand for EVs be further suppressed due to these tariffs? And what impact might these measures have on Germany’s capacity for innovation? In this expert interview, we explore the scenarios currently under discussion in the German automotive and supplier industries.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

Leadership tool? Dashboard!

Are your scrap levels too high? The machines all running at optimal capacity? Have customers paid on time? Controlling your company based on defined KPIs can be a challenge without a dashboard. Senior Consultant Nantwin Apffelstaedt reported on this in detail in Part 1 of our "Dashboards" series. But how do you turn a dashboard into one that brings true impact to your company?

Strategy & Corporate Performance

Taking advantage of the crisis before it's too late: How to boost your performance

The Corona pandemic and its consequences, including disruption of important supply chains and shortages of materials, have plunged many companies into a crisis that threatens their very existence. Small and medium-sized companies in particular are having to contend with double-digit falls in sales and earnings. Companies that failed to prepare for the crisis in good times have been hit particularly hard. So it's high time to tackle the issue of preventive restructuring now.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

Change of leadership in the family - without the Prince Charles Syndrome

90 percent of German companies are family businesses. Often with a long tradition and several management changes from generation to generation. These handover processes are often complex. "A family-internal company handover is of great importance for all family members," finds Bessie Fischer-Bohn. The economist, psychotherapist and executive consultant has been accompanying families through the leadership transition for many years. Why do those who don't normally sit at the conference table also have to come to the table? How can the Prince Charles Syndrome be avoided? And what do families typically ignore?

Strategy & Corporate Performance

There is no one way to become a board member

Corona and no end - What does this actually mean for banks? How do financial institutions currently assess the competitiveness of their customers? How meaningful are profit and loss statements (P&L) after the numerous liquidity aids provided by the German government? How does Rita Herbers, member of the board of Hamburger Volksbank, experience the Corona pandemic and how did she become the first female board member in the 160-year history of Hamburger Volksbank?Rita Herbers, Member of the Board of Hamburger Volksbank, and our Managing Partner Uwe Köstens talk about this in the enomyc Podcast.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

Tool introduced - and then?

The Corona pandemic has undoubtedly given digitization in Germany a major boost. But the momentum did not happen voluntarily everywhere. While young companies, in particular those with fluid structures and processes, are finding it easy to go digital, the comprehensive digitization of business processes is still meeting with resistance in many long-established companies.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

The New Demand: Talent Acquisition and Recruiting Today

Distance Leadership and the skills that can now make it easier for managers and remote teams: We recently talked about this with our Head of Human Resources Dr. Axel Hermeier. But what are the skills that hiring managers are paying more attention to than ever before? After all, the changes in the world of business and work have opened new job profiles and changed old ones. The focus on the fitting talents seems to have sharpened.What is increasingly important to companies in the search for talent and in the hiring process? And - vice versa: What new demands are increasingly being made of jobseekers? A look at the new challenges in talent acquisition and recruiting with Dr. Axel Hermeier.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

No small buns: Four success factors for the professional reorganization of bakeries

Baking is en vogue: since the lockdowns, when mainly flour and yeast were sold out in supermarkets, another habit has been established: People are buying more from their friendly baker next door, whereas the bakery-restaurant sector has declined.The "culprit" is the home office and resulting less crowded city centers, train stations and airports. The figures speak a clear language. And the signs? The signs are still clearly pointing to change.What opportunities should bakeries seize now, and how do they succeed in reorganizing operations professionally? Dr. Tim Bauer, Managing Consultant at enomyc, reports on four proven success factors.

Strategy & Corporate Performance

We do not want to drive a company into insolvency

As one of the world's leading credit insurers, how does Coface assess the impact of the Corona pandemic? Should we be prepared for a major wave of bankruptcies? Was now the right time for the supply chain bailout to expire? What is in store for companies now?We asked Jochen Böhm, Risk Underwriting Director and Member of the Management Board for the Northern Europe region at Coface. He is responsible for risk and commercial underwriting at the international credit insurer and specialist in receivables management. He knows exactly what companies need to pay attention to in order to operate successfully in the long term, to what extent risks can be taken and how the risk situation is developing for companies worldwide.

Get industry insights now!