In every large company that has grown historically, there are topics you may not like to tackle, but it has to be done. In other words, illuminate the dusty corners with a spotlight and sweep them out. So we’ve rolled out this internal initiative within the IT department worldwide and the teams have cleaned up. So I looked at all applications and cataloged them. The aim of the campaign was to consider what we still need, where to invest and transform, what our IT landscape should look like in the future, and paring down programs.
Which topics are particularly exciting for you?
Let me start with the global issues. These are exciting times due to the macroeconomic situation, as well as the state of the markets and resulting implications for the way we set up our IT. It’s a particularly exciting time for Mercedes-Benz because we’re positioning ourselves more broadly in terms of business models. I’m thinking here of the sales of the future, for example. Ordering a Mercedes must be as much fun as driving one. With the further expansion of our online stores, we’re offering customers the opportunity to complete the car purchase and leasing process completely digitally. This has major implications for our IT landscape, both in terms of availability and the integration of various applications. But the way we develop and build automobiles is also changing. Just think of digital twins or AI, for instance. With a sense of proportion, we want to digitize everything that can be digitized. When I started coding 20 years ago, I could only dream of the possibilities that exist today thanks to AI.
