Fixing Trust is Harder Than Fixing Cars
An Open Letter to VW
Dear VW,
I’m sure there’s much going on there in Wolfsburg in the wake of the massive diesel emissions scandal. As your new chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch framed it, you are facing an “existence-threatening crisis.”
Perhaps you will fire a few more guys, hire some PR people with BP experience, take out a few more full-page ads, pay substantial fines, face interrogation from governments and regulators, retrofit the 11 million diesels to comply with emission standards, and then resume business as usual. Perhaps if you play it by the book your stock price will recover and you will regain some of the global vehicle market that you have lost.
Or perhaps you’ll take former CEO Martin Winterkorn’s departing advice that, “Volkswagon needs a fresh start…”
A fresh start could be a great opportunity to rethink and critically reengineer all facets of VW. The head of VW USA, Michael Horn echoed the sentiment to get your act together as he pointed out your problems go beyond cheating emissions tests.
“We have broken the trust of our customers, dealerships, and employees, as well as the public and regulators.”
Fixing trust is more difficult than fixing a vehicle, even 11 million of them. It’s also more important. Without trust, it does not matter how good your product fix, new service, or sparkly brand is.
Here are a few trust-building fresh start ideas for your consideration.
Be Accountable
The who, what, where, when, and how need to be fully disclosed. This wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t an oversight. It wasn’t a one-off thing. There need to be some insights uncovered about your own organization, decision making, and processes. No matter what comes of internal and external investigations, face the wrongdoing and consequences with your eyes wide open. Make the necessary changes.
Make Amends
Make amends with dealers, with customers, with regulators, with suppliers, with employees, and with the public. There is certainly a financial aspect with many of these groups, but that is only one component.
Make it easy for owners
Work with your dealers and talk to owners who will be facing greater depreciation and lower demand for their vehicles. They will be angry. They will have questions. They may be confused about what to do next. They also may be part of class-action lawsuits against VW.
- Give the owners easy options.
- Consider a proactive vehicle exchange or generous trade-in allowance.
- Work with emissions testing bodies to set up thorough retests that are simple and easy for owners.
- Purchase carbon offsets on behalf of your owners.
- Offer a 2x or 5x match for any carbon offsets that your dealers may purchase.
- Reconsider VW sponsorships and partnerships through environmental and well-being filters.
- Plant forests of 11 million trees in all the countries affected —in addition to all of the above.
Make certain all of this is always your problem, not theirs.
Clean It Up
One reason your diesels were so popular was that people were buying into (what appeared to be) a relatively eco-conscious platform. If you can fix this, fix it above and beyond any emissions criteria. Don’t just pass the test. Pass it with flying colors.
Change The Culture
Pride and secrecy are part of many popular consumer brand cultures, especially in the automotive industry. Add ambition, deception, and greed and it creates the stuff of Hollywood. While this may make a good story, it’s not one VW owners or dealers wanted to see — much less appear in.
A scandal this egregious for a global brand goes well beyond the usual cultural tonic. This includes boys clubs, familial brands Audi and Porsche, and even the country of origin. Closing ranks and saying, “Thanks for the input. Don’t worry, we got this.” will not work. We are worried and we do not believe that you “got this.”
Start by making the new CEO the interim CEO. Mr. Muller’s resume includes oversight of VW product management from 2007–2010. If he knew about this situation he should be replaced. If he did not know about it he should be replaced.
Change the culture by engaging openly with existing communities (and starting new and diverse ones) to co-create trust.
- Consider opening up parts of your code.
- Create a VW API — a sandbox for developers.
- Offer rewards and incentives for great ideas. Pass them on to consumers. Share them with the industry.
Software is now as important as any other component on your assembly line, and it needs to be developed and tested to meet rigorous requirements.
Trust (there’s that word again) your employees and dealers to make recommendations on process, organization, and decision making fixes based on investigative insights.
The Internet of Things
“The Thing” was your thing in the US in the 70’s.
Bring it back — at least in name.
Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, connected devices, and driverless cars continue to advance on the tech side of transportation, while sharing economies, alternative energy, and sustainability shape the financial/resources side. VW could play an active part in these developments. In fact, by cheating emission tests, you’ve become a case study at the nexus of all of of this.
Now is the time to create a new Bauhaus dedicated to the Internet of Things. It could be part startup accelerator, part think tank (someday, part university) focused on The Internet of Things/Transportation. The mission could be to advance ethics, trust, and security in the code that’s running your — and all of our transportation devices. This new multidisciplinary entity could bring together experts and entrepreneurs from all areas to foster systems and design thinking, data analysis, and innovative transportation solutions to problems we’re just starting to face.
In addition to new business creation, byproducts could be thought leadership on regulation, security, safety, and compliance — all of those unsexy topics that are essential for building trust.
How does VW even begin to do any of this? Hold a proof of concept conference on either side of a dealer meeting. Hold a VW startup weekend. Establish a VW startup accelerator. (as Disney and other brands have done with Techstars)
Move People
Another important aspect of the Internet of Things/Transportation could be going beyond one-owner one-vehicle thinking. Like Car 2 Go, Uber and the ride-sharing economy, how can VW innovation go beyond a private single vehicle mindset? Car shows are full of future concepts and you no doubt have some developments there. Consider supplementing these curtained “reveals” with meaningful dialogue, demo days, and thought leadership regarding larger transportation solutions for the VW community and the world at large.
Don’t Forget the Fun
Of all the historical and cultural elements that the VW brand is known for, fun is an important one that’s hard to even consider amid your trying circumstances. Many auto brands are envious of the VW community and pop culture associated with your Beetle and Vanagon. Remember those humane and quirky things like the bud vase on the dash or the surfboard or pop-top on the camper van may get lost in the mix. Reconnect with those enthusiasts and dream about the future of fun.
But first it’s time to get at all the hard foundational work to repair the trust.
Here’s hoping that you find the courage to embark upon a truly fresh start.
Sincerely,
David Betz
Update: August 2017
VW engineer sentence to 40-month prison term in diesel case.
Update: January 2018
“Ten monkeys squatted in airtight chambers, watching cartoons for entertainment as they inhaled fumes from a diesel Volkswagen Beetle.”
Update: June 2018
Update: July 2019
“Nearly four years after Volkswagen confessed to systematically evading pollution rules for a decade, facets of the scandal are still coming to light.”
Update: March, 2021
Volkswagon of America lied about rebranding to ‘Voltswagen’
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David Betz WAS a VW owner and Creative Director.
He is also a Startup Weekend facilitator.
