The entire purchasing department of the corporate group was undergoing a massive transformation process. The group is in the process of completely reorganizing itself and becoming an independent group of companies.

At this stage, the Head of Supplier Quality has changed. Therefore, we looked for an interim manager at short notice who would continue to run the department, which was nevertheless a large one, and above all implement the necessary optimizations and process improvements. This is also in preparation for a permanent successor who can then pick up and continue at a new level.

Why did you bring the GOiNTERIM Manager on board?
Since we know GOiNTERIM very well and appreciate it as a sparring partner, we discussed the topic and the requirements in detail here.

Important was on the one hand the very fast start and immediate availability of suitable managers and on the other hand the fulfillment of the high requirements. All the managers we were introduced to had the necessary skills and experience.

What are the prerequisites for the GOiNTERIM Manager?
The interim manager met all requirements and even topped them. It was absolutely the right appointment for an external manager during the difficult phase.

What he brought to the table: He was a very experienced quality manager with years of experience, even in upheaval and transformation projects. He also had broad automotive and automotive supply industry experience. All of this coupled with management and leadership skills. Knowledge of all important standards such as IATF 16949, ISO and VDA was a matter of course.

What were the goals / tasks of the project?

• Management of the supplier quality organization with advance supplier quality planning and supplier development
• Systematic development of the Supplier Quality – Transformation
• Develop, implement and track actions to improve supplier quality and efficiency within the department.
• Planning & assurance of component quality in the product development phase
• Qualification and approval of new and existing suppliers according to VDA 6.3 and 6.7
• Monitor supplier performance metrics and initiate improvement actions
• Negotiation and agreement of quality assurance agreements with suppliers
• Interface between purchasing / quality departments plants
• Implementation of TOP WORST Supplier Meetings
• Support for benchmark and ratio projects
• Reappraisal of missing processes in Supplier Quality Management

What success did the IM operation bring? What were the most important steps that GOiNTERIM Manager implemented?
In addition to the operational issues and the management of the team and the day-to-day business, the transition and optimization of the area was of central importance and content of the project.

After a short handover or familiarization phase, it was first necessary to highlight the organizational process issues that showed clear potential for optimization and/or were/are associated with a corresponding process risk.

Problematic issues were discussed and transparently mapped via team-specific kick-off meetings.

Another focus of action was the (incomplete) process map, which was updated and completed in collaboration with the entire team (previously “13 processes”/after “51 processes”).

At the same time, the process owners and responsibilities were also defined, i.e. who will be responsible for the respective process in the future. In order to optimize the process flow and to capture all process risks and participants, it was also determined that a turtle diagram must be created in advance for each process.

Support in a very large subrogation case with a major supplier in collaboration with an OEM.

The team was able to set another milestone with the installation of the cross-plant determination of FLOP suppliers to provide additional support for interdisciplinary cooperation with the plants and specialist departments. The objective is to minimize the number of complaints, accelerate the processing of complaints and increase the quality of processing (content, effectiveness, etc.).

An action plan is created for each FLOP supplier, showing the reasons for escalation, the results of the last 4 supplier evaluations and the measures that have been bindingly agreed with the supplier.

In addition, the department was able to provide effective and successful support as a team in various internal and external audits, as well as in complaints and escalation issues.

A large number of comments were placed at the kick-off meetings indicating a variance or improvement. In the course of the implementation of the project, the main positions could be clarified or processed

What successes / results would you highlight?
The task was associated with many challenges, since it was not only a question of temporary management, but many current key issues had to be dealt with without delay in order to fundamentally ensure the holistic success of the project.

Among other things, it was determined that the entire procurement process landscape needed to be optimized and reorganized. The existing processes are not up to date, incomplete, or do not exist. Everything was analyzed and successfully implemented in the project. By consistently involving all stakeholders, we succeeded in updating the process map for the entire purchasing group and identifying or assigning all process blockages and disruptive factors.

The team-oriented task assignment and process analysis formed another milestone, as this not only illuminated the process risks, but also created the basis for the process flow diagram.

In parallel, the mindset had to be adapted, i.e., the employees themselves and the plants had to adapt to the new processes, as the team was seen more as a human resource to handle complaints from the plants, etc.

There were similar themes in the project business, but with different signs. Thus, a supplier evaluation method had to be introduced here that follows a process standard, is largely automated and has full acceptance.

The support and handling of the upcoming customer audits and customer complaints, as well as the processing of the various task force topics were on top.

With his involvement in the recourse case between. OEM, the customer and the supplier, a significant contribution was made to the payment of the damage by the supplier’s insurer.

Even though many tasks were unknown in advance, there is no doubt that the project was successfully completed by implementing all the assigned tasks, the handover of management was handled excellently.

Would you use GOiNTERIM again?
Yes, and we have already done so several times, both for interim mandates and in the area of executive search. GOiNTERIM is a partner at eye level, who knows us and also understands the issues of the automotive industry very well and can therefore provide the best candidates and managers.