The automotive industry in the era of sustainability

With growing concerns about climate change and environmental degradation, sustainability has become a strategic priority for automotive organisations. Governments, consumers, and investors are now pushing automotive organisations to change their ways of working, culture, and products. This will have far-reaching implications for the industry, which despite having made substantial progress, still has to step up its sustainability efforts.

So, where does the industry stand today in terms of its sustainability initiatives and what does the future hold?

A strategic priority yet a fragmented execution

Hence the latest, comprehensive research from the Capgemini Research Institute – The automotive industry in the era of sustainability. We surveyed 500 large automotive organisations as well as 300 experts, including regulators, academics and non-governmental organisations working in the field of sustainability. We found that:

• Sustainability has become a strategic priority for the industry – 62% of automotive organisations claim to have a comprehensive sustainability strategy with well-defined goals and targets.
• But implementation seems fragmented and an additional $50 billion investment is needed to meet sustainability commitments.
• 74% of OEMs have an electric vehicle plan. However, only 56% of them have made EVs a part of their sustainability strategy. We analyse how this could be counterproductive.
• Supporting and promoting circular economy – the most implemented sustainability initiative – is deployed by 52% of the organisations. Yet, more needs to be done to reap its full potential.
• Only 9% of the automotive organisations we surveyed have a mature sustainability program, while 26% have are lagging behind considerably.

Based on input from sustainability leaders, we believe automotive firms should:

• Demonstrate tangible progress on sustainability
• Pursue sustainability as an organisation-wide mission
• Make business executives accountable for sustainability and invest in robust governance
• Envision and spread sustainability initiatives across the automotive value chain
• Use technology to improve sustainability of operations
• Strengthen alliances and partnerships for greater impact.

For more information on sustainability in automotive, download the report.