Around the world in 24 hours: First Digital BMW Group Dialogue.

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Munich. On 5-6 October, BMW AG hosted the first Digital BMW Group Dialogue with international guests from around the globe. With stations in the Americas, Asia and Europe, the Dialogue brought key stakeholders worldwide together for an extensive discussion of “sustainability in the supply chain”. Dr Andreas Wendt, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, welcomed those watching via livestream at the BMW Welt Future Forum. 

Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, presented the company’s targets up to 2030 on 27 July. “The best cars in the world are sustainable. That is why premium and sustainability will be even more inextricably linked in the future,” said Zipse, promising to anchor sustainability in all divisions – from administration and purchasing to development and production, all the way to sales. The emphasis was on concrete targets like CO2 reduction by 2030 and responsible resource management. Reducing CO2 is a top priority – and, for the first time, the entire lifecycle, from the supply chain through production to the end of the use phase, will be taken into account. 

As part of the Digital BMW Group Dialogue, BMW AG conducted market research that highlighted the growing significance of sustainability to today's society. For example, when buying a product, an environmentally responsible supply chain is important to very important for around 78% of those surveyed. Almost 90% also said they avoid buying products with problematic value chains. These values give an indication of how important and decisive the value chain is for a large majority of the public. 

Giving his assessment of the dialogues, Dr Andreas Wendt, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, commented that BMW Group stakeholders and experts had clearly sparked ideas in each other. 

The Digital BMW Group Dialogue continues the tradition of BMW Dialogues, which have been held worldwide since 2011. Previous Dialogues provided valuable insights and explored challenges and solutions relating to the topic of corporate responsibility. The aim is to create a comprehensive learning process, with constant further development of ideas that can help achieve the desired sustainable development goals. 

Voices from the Americas Dialogue

Leah Butler (Executive Director, Responsible Business Alliance, USA): “Sustainability is about long-term positive impacts for people and planet. So, one of the key things with sustainability is how do we take care of future generations.” 

Patrick Hudde (Vice President, Raw Material Management, BMW AG): “Our goal is to lead in this field and to have the most sustainable supply chain in the automotive industry worldwide.” 

Voices from the Asia Pacific Dialogue

Jack Wyse (Senior Digital Sourcing + Sustainability Analyst, John Lewis + Partners Hong Kong): “The question is where do consumer want to spend more? And I think there is a real intrinsic link for lot of consumers between sustainability and quality. So, if we say we are buying a sustainable product it’s also because we want a product that’s actually a better product.” 

Voices from the Europe and Africa Dialogue

Janne Werning (Head of ESG Capital Markets, Union Investment, Germany): “From an investor perspective, we look at the risk profile of a company and therefore the implementation and practice of sustainability management within the supply chain is very important.” 

Claudia Becker (Senior Expert, Supply Chain Management, BMW AG): “At the BMW Group, we conduct a risk-based analysis of the raw materials we are using to build a car. Currently, we focus on critical value chains (such as cobalt and lithium), and we have a roadmap to reach 18 raw materials by 2030.” 

Videos of the event can be found here: https://www.bmwgroup.com/en/responsibility/stakeholder-engagement/bmw-group-dialogue.html