Insights & Perspectives

According to the German government (11/2019), the German economy is currently going through a weak phase. Although a more severe downturn, or worse, a recession, is not expected at present, there are not yet any signs of an economic turnaround for the better. The current observable relaunch of old cost-cutting measures can, at best, be a mere part of the solution. Such a focus would fall short because, for example, digitization levers for cost reduction are not addressed and the potentials of the service side of the business are not taken into account. The declining growth rates are currently giving many manufacturers food for thought. At management level, discussions about alternative ways of increasing earnings are on the rise. Expansion of the service business aspects appears particularly promising, as it requires significantly less investment than the development of product. In addition, it is also less dependent on economic cycles and enables the generation of noticeably higher margins, especially in times of crisis. How can companies increase their profitability by expanding their services and what are the foundations and success patterns for the further development of the growth driver “service?” Jan Ulrik Holsten, partner at enomyc, addresses this topic in this article. In part 1 of the series “Service as a Growth Driver,” you can learn how to identify success patterns for building your service business and how to further expand both your service strategy and service portfolio.

Cyclists live dangerously. In June 2019, the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel headlined an article titled, “Death risk for cyclists three times higher than for motorists.” The risk of injury is seven times higher, according to Siegfried Brockmann, head of accident research (UDV) at the German insurance association. If you, your family, and your friends ride a bike around town every day, you probably know the worry of making sure that everyone arrives safely at their destination. You may also have experienced situations where there might have been a close call – for example, when you and a truck are turning right – or left in the UK – and you have a green light: in Germany, 38 cyclists lost their lives during this regularly occurring traffic event in 2018.

The faces and stories of our consultants are many and varied. Hardly anyone’s career path that led them to enomyc is like another. We interviewed two of them: Industrial engineer and senior consultant – at 26 years old, Felix Dosch has lived in Australia, worked in the USA, and studied in Taiwan. And 55-year-old Reiner Winkelbauer, business mathematician and partner, completed his master of science in 1990 in Syracuse, New York, before assuming responsibility for 600 employees and 70 million euros in sales as a CFO and managing director for many years. Learn more The most important lessons: advice they didn’t take and insights they want to share with prospective talents.

Mergers and acquisitions: In nearly every instance the accompanying change processes trigger uncertainty among the affected employees - sometimes even a clear defensive attitude. Why is consistent post-merger integration particularly important here and how can companies get their workforce back on track in the PMI process?

"How are we perceived as a company on the market? How well do we meet our customers' expectations today and where does our future business potential lie?" SMEs are confronted with these typical questions time and again. They often look for the answers in their own wealth of experience and rely on their knowledge of the market. But is that enough? Dr. Axel Hermeier, Managing Consultant, at enomyc, knows from experience: "The much better answers come from those who let their customers have their say." And the best way to do that is through regular customer surveys. How can companies develop such surveys, conduct them, and properly apply the insights gained from them?

"The concept of "artificial intelligence" has such surgically specific approaches that hardly anyone can talk about it in a qualified way, if they do not have a deeper involvement," said Franz Wenzel, Senior Consultant at enomyc. He is currently doing his doctorate in energy law on the subject of "Smart metering and flexible consumers". The aim for this article is "to demystify the nebulous term "AI"." What exactly is meant by "artificial intelligence"? What significance does AI have for small and medium-sized enterprises? And above all: Which approaches promise a positive economic effect?

In many companies, the scope for improving profitability through cost reductions has become narrower. The implementation of efficiency improvements often requires great efforts on the part of companies. Price measures, on the other hand, are easier to implement and offer significantly better opportunities for a substantial but also sustainable improvement in profitability. What pragmatic approaches quickly create scope for margin improvements? Jan Ulrik Holsten, partner at enomyc in Berlin, will discuss approaches and offer practical examples for achieving improvements in pricing.