Mercedes boss Ola Källenius (55) is continuing his austerity measures. The company will be canceling salary increases and home offices for its managers next year, a spokesman said. The goal is to Mercedes Benz to make it even more weatherproof and successful in the long term, said a company spokesman.
The manager magazine had already reported on the upcoming austerity measures
. Källenius wants to save around 5 billion euros by 2027, and more than 20,000 jobs could be lost. Like Volkswagen, the group is suffering from weak demand. Källenius’ luxury strategy has flopped, the switch from combustion to electric has been a stumbling block China business collapsed. The stock also doesn’t perform as hoped.
Optimizing the cost structure also involves reducing personnel costs, according to a letter to managers at the beginning of December. “We continually review our lineup. It is clear that we have to become an even leaner company overall.” Everyone in the company would have to make a contribution to this.
Compulsory attendance for managers from January
The austerity measures don’t just affect salary levels. In addition, “the uniform expectation of all senior managers at Mercedes-Benz in Germany” is that they will generally spend their working hours at their place of work from January 2025, the letter continues. In order to be able to respond better to challenges, mutual exchange in person is essential.
After two profit warnings this year, the carmaker’s profit is in the third quarter almost halved. There is no improvement in sight in the fourth quarter either.