BMW Wants More Women
While I was working for the German auto industry (and that wasn’t that long ago), I used to call it the last outpost of unabashed male chauvinism. From dealers (where female customers are treated with disdain) to the boardroom (where women serve coffee), the business remains a man’s world. BMW wants to do something about it. Come on, BMW?
BMW is (unofficially) considered as the brand and company with the most Y chromosomes. BMW wants to change that. At least back home. Automobilwoche [sub] reports that the Bavarian automaker currently has only 8.7 percent of females “in leading positions.” BMW wants to double that number, says Harald Krüger, head of HR at BMW. “Our plan is 15 to 17 percent.”
But BMW is in no great hurry for chasing women (at least when it comes to leading positions.) The target is for 2020. And in any case, it’s a target, no fixed quota.
Y chromosomes, don’t worry. You are safe in a BMW.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
More by Bertel Schmitt
Comments
Join the conversation
@TonyJZX The new Z4 was designed by 2 women, and is a MUCH nicer car than the earlier Z4 designed by men. Let me guess: you are divorced, right? RIGHT?
One of my cousins works for Toyota in Torrance. She's a VP. When she goes to Japan, she gets treated like absolute shit, despite being a VP here. Since she's white (one strike), female (2 strikes), she makes no headway with the bozos in Tokyo. Nevermind that her Japanese is flawless, they pretend they can't understand her. This is not a problem limited to BMW...
BMW wants more women in leadership positions in Germany eh? Could be a chicken vs egg issue. Smells a little like there's some pandering to public perception going on. Can companies change society? Should they?
Let's see the Bangles is an all girl band, and Chris Bangle is the designer of the Bangle Butt cars and well..... not sure what this all means...