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The 2022 Plante Moran WRI® (Working Relations Index®) Study of North American auto supplier-Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) relationships is a bedrock survey in the industry. But does it really impact the bottom line? And what can OEMs do with the information?
Dave Andrea, principal at Plante Moran and guardian of the WRI, relies on insight gathered across the industry to help answer these questions. And as someone who spent almost forty years at General Motors, Steven Kiefer, chairman of The Kiefer Foundation, provides an unmatched inside look at the internal processes OEMs use for change.
“For the OEMs, [the WRI® is] a fantastic piece of data,” Steve says. It provides an invaluable view of the relationship between automotive OEMs and their supply bases (aka suppliers), which is paramount because if there is any tension, OEMs aren’t efficient, which hinders organizational growth.
Beyond just looking at the WRI® as useful data to look at how to improve, it’s also about proactively using this information within an organization to actually improve by increasing overall organizational effectiveness and leading to more growth. These actions are at the heart of improving supplier relationships. “You can see how much mutual dependency there is between the supplier and the OEM,” Dave says.
On this episode of Finding Gravitas, Dave and Steve share how the power of the 2022 WRI® Study directly impacts the change OEMs seek within their organizations, and what this tells us about the future of supply chain leadership in the automotive industry.
Themes discussed in this episode:
What he does: as Principal at Plante Moran, self-described “accidental analyst” Dave Andrea is a guardian of the WRI®. Dave grew up with a passion for automotive from the get-go and is still going strong.
On gravitas: “It’s about being aware of other people, being humble to be able to stop and help someone else. But you’ve had to get there first — you’ve had to build up your own credibility base or your own resources or your own network to be able to help someone else, and make that opportunity open up a door for someone else to succeed, just as any one of us has.”
What he does: “Just a kid from Detroit,” Steven Kiefer recently retired from a four-decade career with General Motors. Father of four Steven is chairman of The Kiefer Foundation,...
