Brexit and the UK Automotive Industry : Uncertainty around the final Brexit deal between the UK and the EU still remains. This is particularly true for the automotive industry where OEMs such as Ford, Honda and Renault-Nissan have all publicly raised their concerns. To find out what was happening within the industry, OpenText and the Centre of Brexit Studies conducted a comprehensive study focusing on this sector.

The  research study set out to identify the likely implications that different Brexit options could have on the industry and how prepared organisations were across five key business areas: supply chain management, operations and logistics, human resource management, regulations and compliance, and customer communications. The research drew on many different information resources and included in-depth interviews with senior executives in the UK automotive industry.

The research findings suggest that all current available trade scenarios put up different types of trade barriers for the sector, and makes a series of recommendations for risk management and scenario planning strategies that can help companies adapt, whatever the final outcome of Brexit negotiations.

Key recommendations include:

• Automotive companies need to have good enterprise information management (EIM) policies in place for managing and reporting on contracts to implement changes and mitigate risks.
• OEMs and suppliers need to have a strong information governance strategy in place to ensure compliance with any new regulatory requirements or checks.
• More emphasis on workforce planning and skills development is needed for the UK automotive industry to mitigate restrictions or changes to the free movement of people.
• Closer communication and collaboration between automotive manufacturers, partners and customers is needed to ensure a free flow of information.
• Automotive manufacturers need to have an improved understanding of their supply chain, particularly with respect to any new documentation and compliance requirements that might be put in place.

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