IPADE Hosts Industry Leaders at IPADE Auto Summit 2017

On October 10, IPADE hosted leaders from the automotive industry for the IPADE Auto Summit 2017. The event, made in partnership with IESE Business School, gathered together the top minds from the automotive industry in Mexico and beyond to discuss the opportunities and challenges currently facing the industry.

The theme for this year’s event was “A booming industry.” Throughout the course of the day-long event, keynote speakers and panel sessions sought to begin a dialog on the current realities of the automotive industry, as well as the future of an industry facing technological, environmental, and social changes.

“Today’s program was designed around three main focuses,” said Arturo Orozco, Director of the IPADE Auto Summit. “Geopolitical changes, specifically the political and commercial relationship between Mexico and the United States, technological changes and the shift towards electric vehicles, and the increasing digitalization of the economy -the fourth industrial revolution-.”

Participants at the Auto Summit 2017 included renowned academics and business leaders from the sector, including Alexander Wehr, President and CEO of BMW México; Fernando Enciso, CEO of Grupo Autofin Automotriz; and Thomas Benz, Automotive Solutions Director of the PTV Group. The event also welcomed experts from other sectors, including Herminio Blanco, President of IQOM Inteligencia Comercial; Enrique Dussel, Director of the Mexico-China Center at UNAM; Marc Sachon, Professor at IESE Business School; and Glynn Fletcher, President of EOS North America, among others.

“The automotive industry and innovation have gone hand in hand during the industrial era -production procedures, assembly lines, supply chains, value chains- these innovations and methodologies all emerged from the automotive industry,” said IPADE Dean Rafael Gómez Nava. “Yet the modern automotive industry is now facing fundamental challenges, challenges from technology, the arrival of new transportation methods such as autonomous cars and electric cars, and the arrival of new players that have entered an industry that had previously been dominated by three countries. We are here today to help strengthen a sector that has been a pillar of modern industry and to address the changes that the sector now faces, including technological advances, new models, and new ways of doing business.”

IPADE’s industry-specific events seek to provide a forum for business leaders to come together and engage in dialog regarding the relevant issues facing their industry. These events also provide an opportunity to strengthen and deepen IPADE’s connections with other universities and researchers around the world, encouraging the exchange of ideas.

IPADE would like to thank its partner, IESE, as well as the sponsors of the Auto Summit 2017 -Deloitte, Scotiabank, and Securitas-.