In an interview with Saurav Kumar, Managing Director, Protiviti Member Firm for India, AutoEV Times, shares his insights on the evolving automotive landscape. He discusses the challenges OEMs and auto component manufacturers face amid digitalisation, electrification, and supply chain transformation. Kumar highlights the importance of operational resilience, data-driven governance, ecosystem collaboration, and strategic adaptability as key factors for achieving sustainable growth and long-term competitiveness in a dynamic market.
Read the full interview here:
AET: India’s automotive industry is undergoing significant transformation. What are the biggest operational and business challenges OEMs and auto component manufacturers are facing today?
Saurav: The automotive industry is dealing with multiple transitions beyond electrification. The are also looking at navigating shifts towards software-defined vehicles, supply chain localisation, changing customer expectations and increasing regulatory requirements.
For OEMs and suppliers, the challenge is not simply adopting new technologies. It is building new capabilities while continuing to run highly efficient operations. Companies are being asked to invest in batteries, electronics, software and digital capabilities while maintaining competitiveness in a market where margins remain under pressure.
The organisations that are navigating this transition most effectively are those that view it as a business transformation rather than a technology transformation. They are strengthening operational resilience, investing in talent and creating the flexibility required to respond to a rapidly evolving market.
AET: As automotive supply chains become increasingly complex, how can companies strengthen governance, risk management, and operational resilience across their value chains?
Saurav: Over the last few years, automotive companies have learned that efficiency alone does not guarantee resilience. Supply chains have become more interconnected and disruptions can emerge from anywhere within the ecosystem.
The most successful organisations are investing in integrated platforms that provide a clear view across suppliers, manufacturing operations, logistics partners and dealer networks. This enables leadership teams to identify risks earlier and respond more effectively.
At the same time, governance is becoming more data-driven. Rather than relying solely on periodic reviews, organisations are increasingly monitoring supplier performance, compliance, operational stability and risk indicators on a continuous basis.
Resilience today is not about reacting faster. It is about developing the capability to anticipate issues before they affect operations or customers.
AET: Digitalisation is reshaping the automotive sector. How are ERP systems, data analytics, and real-time reporting helping organisations improve efficiency, visibility, and decision-making?
Saurav: The real value of digitalisation comes from improving the quality and speed of decision-making. ERP platforms have evolved beyond transaction processing systems. When supported by strong data governance, they provide a foundation for connecting operations, supply chains, finance and customer-facing functions. This creates greater transparency across the organisation and enables more informed decisions.
We are also seeing increasing adoption of analytics and AI to improve production planning, inventory management, quality performance and asset utilisation. Real-time dashboards allow management teams to move from reviewing historical performance to actively managing current performance.
Ultimately, organisations derive the greatest value when technology enables better business decisions rather than simply generating more information.
AET: Managing extensive vendor, dealer, and after-sales networks remains a critical challenge. What best practices can automotive companies adopt to improve collaboration, transparency, and performance across these ecosystems?
Saurav: OEMs have recognised that their competitive advantage in not limited to quality and price of end product but is increasingly dependent on the strength of their overall business and partner ecosystem.
Whether it is suppliers, dealers or service partners, collaboration is most successful when there is transparency around performance expectations and business objectives. Leading companies are creating shared scorecards, improving information flow and using digital platforms to increase visibility across the network.
At the same time, strong governance remains essential. Collaboration should be supported by consistent monitoring of quality, service levels, compliance and operational performance.
The objective is to build relationships that go beyond transactional interactions and create a more resilient and responsive ecosystem.
AET: Having worked with automotive organisations across India, North America, and the Middle East, what key lessons or global best practices do you believe Indian companies can leverage to enhance competitiveness?
Saurav: As the industry continues to evolve, adaptability becomes far more important than just scale of operations. Globally, the most successful automotive companies focus on establishing a single, reliable and integrated source of truth for decision-making, embedding proactive risk management into day-to-day operations and maintaining a strong linkage between operational performance and business outcomes.
Indian automotive companies have already demonstrated strong manufacturing capabilities and cost competitiveness. The next opportunity lies in combining these strengths with data-driven decision-making, stronger ecosystem collaboration and greater organisational agility.
One lesson from global players that Indian OEMs should consider is that merely adopting technology and innovation by itself rarely creates sustainable advantage. Successful organisations create advantage through disciplined execution.
AET: Looking ahead, what strategic priorities should automotive companies focus on to balance operational excellence, risk mitigation, and sustainable business growth in an increasingly dynamic market?
Saurav: The automotive industry is entering a period where change will be constant rather than episodic. Leadership teams must focus on building organisations that can adapt quickly while maintaining operational discipline. This requires continued investment in digital capabilities, stronger supply chain resilience, effective risk management and upskilling workforce for tech-evolution readiness.
Equally important is ensuring that operational metrics, risk indicators and strategic objectives remain aligned. Organisations often have access to significant amounts of data, but the real challenge is identifying the measures that genuinely influence business performance and long-term value creation.
The companies that will succeed over the next decade will not necessarily be those that change the fastest. They will be those that can continuously adapt while maintaining clarity of purpose and consistency of execution.
