Memo To Marchionne: Government Help? My Eye
A month ago, I wrote about a talk with a friend of mine who still has his high-paying job at a German automaker. He had listened to Sergio Marchionne’s appeal for government intervention in a European car industry suffering from overcapacity. My friend said that his employer and other German makers are strictly against governmental tinkering and artificial resuscitation of automakers in distress. He reported that their order books are full, and they are happy to take the market share of European makers in distress. Now, this memo finally arrived on Sergio Marchionne’s desk.
“German car companies Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW are against any sort of European Union intervention that would help companies shut down excess automotive factories, carmakers’ lobby group ACEA president Sergio Marchionne said” today to Reuters.
ACEA is the club of European auto manufacturers. While most ACEA members agree that overcapacity is a problem in Europe, the group’s German members are of a different opinion, Marchionne said. He continued:
“The three German makers appear united against an EU intervention. The issue is on the table, and we’re trying to understand what the German position is.”
Well, Sergio, I spent most of my professional life translating the thoughts of German auto executives into comprehensible words. Sometimes, all I had to do was break them down into bullet points.
- The German position is that they are doing just fine.
- Their order books are full.
- They are happy to take the market share of European makers in distress.
- They are happy that the Euro is still relatively affordable, which is good for their exports.
- They agree that there are too many car makers in Germany, but they are convinced that it’s the weaker that should look for other employment.
Where do I send the bill?
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.
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This German macho control thing has got me worried..they are scary folks...history has proven it. I dont want Europe to be a subdivision of Germany! Too much power in one place..and that place being Germany is a BAD thing! I`m sure glad I live in the U.S. and not France!
The reason German cars sell well, is because their good reputation. Germans have had their fair share of screw-ups and not every product has stellar performance, but the truth is that German engineering and manufacturing (of which autos are a subset) is highly admired and coveted world-wide. This doesn't come to one overnight...is decades of discipline and hard work. You reap what you sow. Having said that, that sometimes leads to arrogance and even outright superiority complexes. Not long ago there was a history channel feature in which they discussed that German superiority complexes was what did them on WW2. Imagine invading the Soviet Union, a few months later declaring war to the USA, while still fighting a down-on-their-knees but still undefeated British Empire! Not considering all the troops commited to Greece, Yugoslavia, Norway, North Africa and other countries.