What an amazing experience! I can barely begin to absorb all that we saw and learned. I want to thank Don, Rita and Shannon for creating such an inspirational and educational opportunity. I arrived home so inspired and motivated to move ahead personally and professionally. It’s difficult to decide which of the many events was the most fulfilling … the engineering precision of the BMW plant, the creativity and innovation of Nokia Siemens, or the insight and knowledge of so many of the speakers. I personally took so much from the vast experience these professionals so willingly shared with us.

All this was only further bolstered by the many cultural experiences. Munich was such a welcoming city. The visit to Dachau was so poignant; it’s difficult to put into words how deeply moving it was to be able to visit such a salient piece of history. It’s something I will never forget. By contrast the light hearted and quaint Salzburg - under the skilled guidance of Michael - provided such a wonderful insight into that city’s historic past.

Thanks again to Don, Rita, Uday and Shannon for creating such a wonderful event; to my team Tammy, John R. and Flaiyh for their input and support; and to my cohorts for making this an adventure of a life time … or to quote Michael - Goodie, Goodie, Goodie!

P.S. I found a job posting for Nokia Siemens in the HR department … think Don would let me telecommute?!

Volvo Trucks

The presentation at Volvo Trucks was quite interesting. They are the first to put methane/diesels (blue truck) on the market and are working with new technologies for cleaner air and emissions. Their market share in Germany was a great concern for them even though they were doing quite well with sales.


Their United States sales were over 10 thousand units for the past year and they have been able to penetrate the South American market as well with great success. Part of their global success is to build assembly plants for their vehicles in countries outside of Germany and Sweeden. Volvo seems to be committed to alternative fuels for trucking. Volvo recently delivered its first 10 natural gas-powered VNM daycabs (red truck) to Talon Logistics, Inc., the transportation division of Giant Eagle, Inc., a multi-format food and fuel retailer with stores in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland. Talon also received Volvo’s first delivery of EPA 2010-certified trucks in November 2009.

Last day a roller coaster

Last program day a roller coaster

Started the day with our session at Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN).  Although BMW was definitely a really sharp presentation (maybe 8 on scale of 1-10), SAP TURNED OUT TO BE A 9! Talk about formality, preparedness and interaction, wow! Printed agenda with all participants' names and titles, acrylic table name stands and ample refreshments. The main presenter, Mr. Volker Ziegler, Head of Business Portfolio, Strategy and Business Development, did an awesome job of presenting the NSN story. Mr. Ziegler's style was extremely interactive, making his way around the group, both answering our questions and asking his own of us, all by addressing each person by first name. It felt like we were in a staff meeting  for a company we all worked for. Included were a brief history of NSN, market overview, competitive landscape and basic business direction.

Heiko Straulino, Head of Technology and network Visioning, shared a large portion of the current situation and future vision of NSN from a technological and market perspective.

The Solution Experience Center was just that... an experience! After a 3-minute virtual tour of Bavaria in  a room designed as the inside of a chateau (complete with rock wall and tree-stump seats), we immediately jumped into a 3D demonstration of cell tower operational technology which load-balance and fill in blind spots when a tower goes down. Multiple other demos were viewed, along with a ~6'x3' tabletop model with interchangeable elements (eg. a stadium, hill or building) and, coupled with an overhead projector replicating traffic and phone signals on the model, becomes a focal point for high level business discussions with carrier C-level visitors. I must say this is a high impact impression NSN leaves with me (probably the objective, huh!).

Then, back to reality of a low(er) tech truck manufacturer --- Volvo Group. Completely divorced from the automotive company bearing the same name (maybe to their detriment?) we plowed though a much more sobering picture of a traditional manufacturer.

The most interesting aspect for me was the diametrically opposite personality of the companies. NSN was vibrant, energized, with lots of activity and apparently happy-looking employees.

Last visit

I am going to miss Munich!!! Great city, awesome experience, amazing group. Thank you Shirley, Judith and Gino for the team work! Volvo trucks was very good! Ready to go for our bavarian show!!!!!!

BMW

For an industrial engineer like me, visiting BMW factory is such a pleasure... a benchmarking to my own company. From the very first moment you enter into the facility, everything is detailed oriented. Not doubt why their quality is so high or why it is one of the better considered brands in the world. A sample for the rest of the manufacturing companies. The automatitation carried out the motors and assembly line is shocking. Everything calculated by the second. Great day and sad to be over!

BMW - A great example of german engineering and business precision

What a fantastic presentation at BWM (no, surprise, eh?). Bill McAndrews is certainly one of the most competent presenters I've seen, not just here, but in general. His knowledge base is amazing. I suppose if you have to represent BMW to the world, even on CNBC, you really need to be prepared --- and polished.

I did chuckle over one of Bill's phrases... the very same one I heard him say on a CNBC special on the 2012 Automotive Show. After the spokesperson from Audi proclaimed that Audi's objective was to unseat BWM as the #1 luxury car by 2015, McAndrews quickly said, "Plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery!"

The mission statement presented was very interesting: “To continue as the leading provider of premium products and premium services for individual mobility.” Why? In addition to the fact that they are the only luxury car manufacturer who also produces motorcycles, who knows what the “luxury mobility market” will look like 20 years from now. Regardless, it certainly seems BMW is already deeply involved in shaping whatever it is we ride in or on, no matter how many wheels!

Dr. Girst presented an amazing amount of work BMW does form the cultural perspective. It was very interesting to hear that their work in this area exudes the very foundational philosophy of the company, and not the more typical “sponsorship” activities most companies engage in in order to be seen by the maximum number of eyeballs, regardless of the fit/tie.

Some other surprising items we heard:
-    BMW is headed up by an engineer, not a sales or marketing type;
-    The controlling board has huge representation from the unions;
-    BMW did not cut their cultural programs even during the auto industry’s recent crisis;
-    BMW holds both Toyota and Hyundai in high regard as competitors and excellent companies;
-    A 3-cylinder engine doesn’t sound so silly anymore;
-    Don't give yourself a full-chest BMW tattoo first, then attempt to get BMW sponsorship!

Munich is full of surprises

See Evan's post about this wild... and completely unbelieveable... activity in the heart of Munich.