“Finding the right kit for digitalization in the automotive aftermarket”

Digitalization is a key strategic topic of the Schaeffler Roadmap 2025 and the basis for sustainable corporate success. Digitalization projects in all divisions, functions, and regions make a significant contribution to more innovation, agility, and efficiency. In a recently published interview with NEXUS Automotive International SA Media Jens Willem Schueler , CEO Automotive Aftermarket, explains how the digital transformation is impacting the aftermarket business, what challenges need to be overcome, and what milestones have been reached so far.

Mr. Schüler, digitalization has become one of the core trends within the automotive aftermarket. From your perspective, how does the digital transformation affect the industry?

Digitalization opens up new possibilities and new growth opportunities for the automotive aftermarket and is therefore a central part of Schaeffler’s business strategy. Digitalization is a very broad field – it ranges from automation to connectivity, from better insights to upgraded customer convenience and partially new business cases. We want to become fully digitalized in many of those mentioned areas with a forward-looking product and service portfolio, latest by the end of the decade. We aim to tackle these new developments with our “Digital Transformation” initiative – digitalization drives our organization towards a more end-to-end mindset and teaches us a different speed in terms of implementation. At its core, the initiative is about improving customer experience and developing new software and data-based business solutions alongside our core business.

What are Schaeffler Automotive Aftermarket’s concrete milestones concerning the digitalization of its offerings?

Digital transformation gives us the opportunity to expand our service portfolio and to develop our business jointly with our customers and business partners. Breaking new digital ground allows us to respond to customers’ changing needs and behaviours in a more flexible and agile way. With our “connectivity” approach, we aim to go beyond the bare supply of products but rather think our services and processes from product development to customer experience. Our digital end-to-end approach will be a significant differentiating factor for Schaeffler Automotive Aftermarket as a premium partner in the future.

We have already implemented a number of digital integrated services. With our Aftermarket Cloud we created a central platform for our clients, which comprises all our online activities and offers our clients integrated digital services. We developed data-driven analytic tools and software services to optimize our own processes and to improve our customers’ experience, for example through the digitalization of our technical service offering around our REPXPERT brand. The expansion and development of our digital marketing activities further contributed to our effectiveness and growth.

What are the challenges the automotive aftermarket is currently facing in the context of digitalization?

Free access to data is crucial for promoting digitalization in the automotive aftermarket. Currently, the industry still lacks a consistent platform with equal data access for all stakeholders. On the one hand, there is no defined regulation regarding access rights, format, and infrastructure of data access within the mobility sector. On the other hand, every company has its own requirements regarding the quality of data, which leads to a very fragmented data landscape.

In order to tackle these challenges, Schaeffler Automotive Aftermarket is part of the CARUSO digital data marketplace. As a central platform for the independent aftermarket, CARUSO provides standardized vehicle data and thus connects data suppliers with users. Increasing data availability and enhancing our digital offering are top priorities for Schaeffler. We continue to be a strong and reliable partner for distributors and garages.

What does digitalization mean for Schaeffler Automotive Aftermarket’s daily business?

For us at Schaeffler, digital transformation means a long-term cultural shift towards a “digital mindset” which has become an essential part of our employees’ daily business. We further seek to implement new forms of cross-functional, process-oriented collaborations beyond traditional organizational structures, offer trainings and personal development initiatives and establish an innovation- and development driven corporate culture.