The auto industry will be more disrupted by new digital technologies over the next 10 years than it has been over the last century, explains BCG’s Thomas Dauner. While all the players in automotive seem to be stepping up their game to build new digital businesses and ventures, few are taking the next step: thinking through how to transform the value chain.

Thomas Dauner is the global leader of Boston Consulting Group's Industrial Goods practice. 

Since joining BCG in 1995, Thomas has worked with car and truck manufacturers and suppliers along all steps of the value chain, with a strong focus on new-product development and sales and marketing topics. He has led a number of large-scale turnaround and performance-improvement projects in the automotive industry. In addition, he coleads BCG's Center for Digital in Automotive, which helps mobility-related companies and institutions build new businesses and prepare them for the digital age. 

Although traditional auto topics remain important to him, Thomas spends an increasing share of his time helping clients navigate new technological challenges: connected cars, mobility concepts, autonomous driving, and digitalization of the value chain. 

Before joining BCG, Thomas worked for a leading German bank.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

EDUCATION

  • BS, European business administration, Middlesex University
  • BA, business management, Reutlingen University

Publications and Videos

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Shifting Trade Rules and the Future of North America’s Auto Industry

Two major initiatives by the US to overhaul trade rules could have a massive impact on North America’s automotive manufacturing industry. Here’s how companies should prepare.
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Where to Profit as Tech Transforms Mobility

The auto industry shouldn’t be lulled by steady growth. Electric and autonomous cars and ride-sharing will dramatically shift incumbents’ profit pools and empower new competitors.
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How a New Metric Can Boost Automakers’ R&D Efficiency

The conventional approach to measuring R&D efficiency in the auto industry is flawed. BCG has developed a powerful new metric to address that shortcoming.
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The Factory of the Future

Manufacturers are selectively implementing elements of the factory of the future. Those that transition to full-scale adoption will usher in a new era of industrial operations.
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Self-Driving Vehicles, Robo-Taxis, and the Urban Mobility Revolution

Cities are where self-driving vehicles can fundamentally change—for the better—how people live, work, and get around. The question is, how big will the urban self-driving revolution be?
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What Automakers Can Learn from the Tesla Phenomenon

The stunning consumer response to Tesla’s new Model 3 has already shaken up the automotive world. Competitors should start studying the company’s innovative business model.
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Robo-Taxis and the New Mobility

Autonomous vehicles promise to upend the urban-taxi business, with far-reaching implications for industry incumbents, disruptive new entrants, municipal officials, and—most of all—commuters.
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Revolution in the Driver’s Seat: The Road to Autonomous Vehicles

The first generation of autonomous vehicles is coming soon to a highway near you. Is the automotive industry ready for a revolution?
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The Beyond BRIC Auto Markets: A Close Look at Four Clusters

BCG has identified the four most promising regional clusters among the next generation of rising auto markets. We explore each regional cluster—and the unique regional approach it requires—in depth.
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Beyond BRIC: Winning the Rising Auto Markets

Established markets offer slow or no growth, while the best opportunities in BRICs have been taken. Where next for automotive companies seeking fresh growth?
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