Audi 2013 Annual Report Download - page 81

You both work very hard. How do you motivate yourselves ?
BRUNNERMEIER : I love my job and find it exciting to work
on ideas that help people to understand things. Ideas inspire
and help to inspire others. That is my driving force. My family –
I have two daughters – and my work combined make life very
fulfilling. STROTBEK : Audi is a very emotional company with
a highly motivated team. The success of our technologies has
certainly helped significantly to keep the flame burning. One
of the key tasks for the future will be to keep developing
what makes the brand special. I personally try to keep myself
fit to face these challenges through a combination of physical
exercise and mental training. Only if your mind is agile can you
achieve at the highest level, day in, day out. And that’s precisely
what we seek.
Experts are observing high competitive and price pressure
especially in Europe and China. Mr. Strotbek, you have said
that Audi is not prepared to buy market shares by discounting
its prices.
STROTBEK : That’s right. We have increased our market share
in China, North America and Europe through attractive products
and a strong brand image. Customers also expect a high degree
of price stability from us as a premium carmaker. We are fun-
damentally pursuing a strategy of qualitative growth. In other
words, the priority for us is to see sustained corporate success
rather than simply focus on the next quarter’s results. That is
the only way we can aord high investment spending on new
products, technologies and the infrastructure in the long term
as the basis for realizing our ambitious strategic goals.
The European market is growing more slowly than others.
What role does Europe play for Audi ?
STROTBEK : With over 730,000 vehicle deliveries, Europe is
still our most important sales market despite our considerable
success internationally. Furthermore, a large share of our tech-
nologies and products are developed in Europe. It is where not
only our own engineers, but also many suppliers and development
partners are based. That’s a huge asset. BRUNNERMEIER :
Europe’s sensitivity to environmental issues is undoubtedly also
important. It’s very pronounced. You can tell innovations from
Europe by the sustainability ethos behind them.
Mr. Strotbek, what is your product strategy for the future ?
STROTBEK : We have been very successful at broadening our
product portfolio in recent years. We have focused on four main
directions : We have expanded the full-size category through our
R8 supercar, for instance. Then we have introduced a number of
highly sporty RS models such as the RS Q3, RS 5, RS 6 and RS 7.
We have also brought new models onto the market in the shape
of the A1 series and the new A3 Sedan to attract primarily
young customers to our brand. In extending our SUV range, we
are responding to high demand for such vehicles. We are cur-
rently working intensively on ventures such as the electrification
of our cars. As an initial step, we will be going into production
with the A3 Sportback e-tron, a plug-in hybrid, this year.
There will be huge advances in the operating range of electric
motors. And also in connectivity between the car and its
surroundings. Where do you see the biggest challenges to
remaining successful over the coming years ?
BRUNNERMEIER : I think that a car company has to find the
right strategic partners across all industries in order to integrate
the technologies of the future. People want more than just
a car, they want a complete communications product. Audi has
already taken the first important steps. STROTBEK : Major tech-
nological leaps lie ahead of us. We now have the opportunity to
develop technologies that we believe will bring us success. Man-
aging this complexity is on the one hand an incredible challenge,
but on the other hand it is a huge opportunity.
ACT AHEAD
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