Profile
Robert Kallenberg is Director Strategy and Organization at Porsche AG. Before taking up this position, he was the Head of Strategic Planning for Volkswagen Group at Volkswagen AG. Prior to this, he served as Vice President, Corporate Strategy at Porsche Automobil Holding SE. Robert worked at Porsche AG for ten years in various leadership roles such as Head of Strategy & Organizational Development and Head of Company-wide Porsche Improvement Process. His early career also included a consulting role at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Robert completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical engineering at RWTH Aachen University.
Porsche AG is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars and SUVs. The origin of the company is a design office founded by Ferdinand Porsche in 1931, which was merged into an automobile factory after 1945. The headquarters of Porsche AG is in Stuttgart and the company is owned by Volkswagen AG, a controlling stake of which is owned by Porsche Automobil Holding SE. Exclusivity and social acceptance, innovation and tradition, performance and suitability for everyday use, design and functionality are the brand values of Porsche. In 2019, the company delivered over 280,800 vehicles to customers worldwide.
Key Theme: Much More Is Possible Than Anybody Thought Before
As we conducted this interview during the COVID crisis, Robert reflected on how COVID has impacted the work dynamics in his department. Despite all the demanding adjustments, he sums up the experience from the perspective of digitalization in a positive light. “We did large-scale experiments, virtually, using digital collaboration tools. We quickly moved and set up projects online although there were brief moments of questioning whether we should stop these projects. But it was obvious that we had to at least try it. Basically, all of these trials worked well. Actually, the overall experience is that it worked exceptionally well. This big shift would not have happened without COVID – and it provided proof on what is possible. Our experience is that much more is possible than anybody would have thought before. Going forward there is going to be a new mix between physical and digital. It is likely that hybrid working models will emerge, especially for digital collaboration, and exceed our current vision.”