On February 26, it was reported that Mercedes-Benz had recently interviewed some employees and immediately started layoffs. This round of layoffs mainly involved the sales system, and the main body of the company was Mercedes-Benz (China) Automobile Sales Co., Ltd.
In response to this hot topic, Mercedes-Benz Sales Company said that in the face of a challenging market environment and transformation opportunities in the automotive industry, the company has been actively adjusting its business to continuously improve operational efficiency and market competitiveness. "The relevant adjustments include actively, objectively and prudently adjusting, optimizing and streamlining business processes and corresponding organizational structures to make the company's operations leaner, faster and stronger."
Although no specific details were disclosed, Mercedes-Benz said, "The relevant adjustments will inevitably involve the work arrangements of some employees. We will strictly abide by relevant laws and regulations, and uphold a frank, friendly and responsible attitude to provide relevant employees with follow-up plans that are as reasonable, legitimate and legal as possible, including financial support above the market level and re-employment counseling."
From the perspective of organizational operations, Mercedes-Benz's adjustment follows the basic principles of lean management and will "more deeply apply new digital technologies to empower business operations, improve operational efficiency, streamline business processes, and adjust job settings according to business needs and learn new skills with employees."
Last week, Mercedes-Benz released its 2024 financial report. The group's profit before interest and taxes fell to 13.6 billion euros, but the high cash conversion rate and strict cost control strategy offset sales fluctuations and price pressures, demonstrating operational resilience.
The financial report revealed its aggressive technology product strategy for 2025, and also mentioned the "Operation Improvement Plan" - which clearly aims to reduce production and operating costs by 10% by 2027.
The industry believes that this layoff initiative is also part of the above plan.
The industry revelation of Mercedes-Benz’s organizational adjustment is that when the industrial technology paradigm undergoes a fundamental change, companies need to find a new balance between organizational flexibility and operational efficiency.
According to the PwC Automotive Transformation Index, the organizational structure adaptability of traditional automakers lags behind the speed of technological change by an average of 12-18 months. Mercedes-Benz's adjustment measures are essentially a systematic correction to this time lag effect. Its effectiveness still needs to be verified through subsequent key indicators such as R&D efficiency and per capita output value.
