Innovation at Porsche: Curiosity, Engagement, and International Collaboration
With 2021 coming to an end, Porsche Innovation Management looks back at year filled with many challenges and accomplishments, including successful early-stage innovation projects, new interactive and engaging formats, and a constantly growing innovation community at Porsche.
In its broadest sense, innovation is about the implementation of (novel) ideas and the creation of value. But being innovative often also means the ability to adapt quickly and effectively to changing and often unforeseen circumstances; it involves knowing how to turn challenges and obstacles into opportunities. In a particularly challenging year 2021, the Porsche Innovation Management team has gone the extra mile and took on more challenges than ever before — or at least that’s what it felt like — , implementing a wide range of innovation projects.
Despite the continued uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic, our entire team maintained a steady focus on developing innovative and sustainable solutions, processes, products, and services to deliver added value to both Porsche and its customers. Below you’ll find an overview of what we do and what we have achieved in 2021.
The role of Innovation Management
Before we zoom in on specific projects, let’s take a closer look at Porsche Innovation Management, which was set up in 2016, and its role within the organization. Our agile teams work on early-stage projects, identifying and developing promising, high-impact solutions in order to generate added value for customers, shareholders, vehicles, and corporate processes. Our portfolio focuses on four key innovation areas: (I) company innovation, (II) customer innovation, (III) product innovation, and (IV) sustainability.
Working in a highly cross functional environment and in close collaboration with other departments, the various project teams scout new partners and technologies, develop project ideas, and support their implementation through internal tests at an early stage. With our diverse portfolio of innovation projects, we are doing the best we can to support the successful implementation of the Porsche Strategy 2030, which replaced Strategy 2025 Plus at the end of the last financial year and which shows the way forward for Porsche.
Taycan Turbo S Cross Turismo: Electricity consumption combined (WLTP) 26.4–24.4 kWh/100 km, CO₂ emissions combined (WLTP) 0 g/km, Electricity consumption combined (NEDC) 29.4 kWh/100 km, CO₂ emissions combined (NEDC) 0 g/km.
To further strengthen the innovation culture at Porsche, we also built up a Porsche community platform. With this format, we aim to inform our colleagues about the latest projects, inspire them through impulses and thereby promote the development of new ideas in the company. .
The different dimension of innovation
I) Company innovation
Innovation isn’t just limited to new, shiny products and services, of course. At Porsche, we pursue different tracks of innovation simultaneously. In addition to seeking to improve products and services, we are constantly looking for ways to increase the quality and productivity within our organization. In the field of company innovation, we apply innovation to existing internal methods, techniques and processes and try to find new ways to solve pressing problems across all departments.
The aim of company innovation is to add real value to the company through innovation, be it through emerging technologies or improved processes. For example, to empower our colleagues from production to work in the Porsche Production 4.0 ecosystem, we designed and built a Smart Factory room, a mobile training room with an interactive, game-based concept similar to an escape game. In other innovation projects, we evaluated alternative 3D printing processes in terms of applicability within production, and we tested a multi-purpose robotic arm in dealer workshops for small repair processes.
II) Product innovation
With its technological innovations, Porsche continues to set the bar for the automotive industry.
In the field of production innovation, we work on the development of digital infrastructures as well as on the overall vehicle concept, including design, the use of innovative lightweight materials and the development of an intelligent chassis. Our aim is to enhance the performance and comfort of our vehicles. Innovation projects include, among others, the evaluation of innovative high-voltage battery concepts as well as the potential development flexible, aerodynamic surfaces with innovative actuators. In June, Porsche invested a high double-digit million amount in a factory for high-performance battery cells and the new company Cellforce Group GmbH.
III) Customer innovation
Intuitive user Experience and connected mobility are two examples that fall in the third category: customer innovation. Here, our goal is to create an intuitive and fascinating customer experience. Within this dimension, we also focus on new business models. For example, Porsche Deutschland concluded a pilot project for the auction of non-copyable digital objects. Between 2 and 6 August 2021, collectors and Porsche fans had the opportunity to purchase an exclusive design sketch by exterior chief designer Peter Varga at an auction.
IV) Sustainability
Since 2019, sustainability is a strategic corporate goal for Porsche. Within the Porsche Strategy 2030, sustainability plays an even larger role than before.
Decarbonization and the concept of zero waste have become guiding principle in all that we do. With our early-stage innovation projects, we are helping to build sustainable and transparent supply chains and identify sustainability risks. For example, the Porsche, Audi and Volkswagen brands are using artificial intelligence (AI) — the intelligent algorithm was developed by the Austrian start-up Prewave — to identify sustainability risks such as environmental pollution, human rights abuses and corruption at an early stage.
Innovation as a key enabler
Innovation is an integral part of Porsche’s DNA. We at the Innovation Management team are proud of what we have achieved in 2021, and we look forward to pushing on with our mission to drive innovation.
About this publication: Where innovation meets tradition. There’s more to Porsche than sports cars — we are developing new digital products and services — always with our customers in focus. On our Medium blog, we tell these stories. It’s about our #nextvisions, emerging technologies, and the people that drive our digital journey. If you want to know more, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
