Mercedes 2013 Annual Report Download - page 143

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C | Combined Management Report | Outlook
Workforce
Due to the anticipated business development, production
volumes will continue rising in 2014. At the same time, we will
significantly increase our efficiency and thus also productivity
as a result of the programs we are carrying out in all divisions.
Against this backdrop, we assume that we will be able to
achieve our ambitious growth targets with a largely stable work-
force. In the context of expanding our production network,
new jobs will tend to be created primarily in North America
and Asia. Workforce growth is likely to take place also at
our joint ventures in China and Russia, whose employees are
not included in the figures for the Daimler Group.
Overall statement on future development
On the basis of the measures we initiated in 2013, we can
look to 2014 and the following years with confidence. We made
considerable progress with our growth and efficiency strategy
in the year under review. In all of our automotive divisions, we are
successfully facing the competition with new and extremely
attractive products. At Mercedes-Benz Cars, we will gain new
customers and further strengthen our worldwide market
position with our new and very attractive models in the compact
class. The new C-Class will ensure additional unit sales in
2014, and with the new S-Class, we are once again defining the
benchmark in the segment of luxurious automobiles. Daimler
Trucks is extremely well positioned with its existing product port-
folio, the all-new range of Mercedes-Benz trucks (Actros,
Arocs, Antos, Atego, Unimog and Econic), the new Freightliner
Cascadia Evolution and the FUSO models from Chennai in
India, and our products in the areas of buses and vans are world-
wide leaders amongst the competition. Furthermore, as a
result of extensive investment in our sales organization and
production facilities, we have created the right conditions
to effectively utilize the growth opportunities offered in Asia,
Latin America and Eastern Europe in all our divisions. The
continuation of a very high budget for research and development
expenditure ensures that we will convince our customers
also in the coming years with tailored products, new technolo-
gies and groundbreaking solutions for sustainable mobility.
To make sure that our targeted growth and the associated
investment activity take place on a sound financial basis, we are
implementing wide-ranging programs to enhance efficiency
in all our divisions, whose effects were already apparent in 2013
and which will have a positive impact on earnings above all
in the following years. In addition, we will focus our organization
even more on customers and markets with the “Customer
Dedication” initiative. This will make us faster and more flex-
ible in the management of our business and in addressing
customers’ desires, and will create the right conditions for
us to grow profitably in our core business and in new markets.
Forward-looking statements:
This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current
views about future events. The words “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,”
“estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” ”can,” “could,” “plan,” “project,” “should”
and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements.
These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an
adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a decline
of demand in our most important markets; a worsening of the sovereign-debt
crisis in the Eurozone; an exacerbation of the budgetary situation in the
United States; a deterioration of our refinancing possibilities on the credit and
financial markets; events of force majeure including natural disasters, acts
of terrorism, political unrest, industrial accidents and their effects on our sales,
purchasing, production or financial services activities; changes in currency
exchange rates; a shift in consumer preference towards smaller, lower-margin
vehicles; or a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services
which limits our ability to achieve prices and adequately utilize our production
capacities; price increases in fuel or raw materials; disruption of production
due to shortages of materials, labor strikes or supplier insolvencies; a decline
in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-
reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook
of companies in which we hold a significant equity interest; the successful
implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures; changes in
laws, regulations and government policies, particularly those relating to vehicle
emissions, fuel economy and safety; the resolution of pending government
investigations and the conclusion of pending or threatened future legal proceed-
ings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which we describe under
the heading “Risk and Opportunity Report” in this Annual Report. If any of these
risks and uncertainties materializes or if the assumptions underlying any
of our forward-looking statements prove to be incorrect, the actual results
may be materially different from those we express or imply by such state-
ments. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-
looking statements since they are based solely on the circumstances
at the publication date.