Author: Kloepfel
Further new toll standards adopted The Federal Highway Toll Act was amended again. The new standards are valid from 01 January 2019. In the course of the new regulation, the toll amount will no longer be determined on the basis of the number of axles, but calculated on the basis of the total weight combined with the number of axles from 18 tons. In addition, several amendments to the Road Haulage and Road Traffic Act have been adopted. For example, electronic and natural gas vehicles are not initially affected by the toll. This also includes fuel cell vehicles. According to…
Industry performs above average Deutsche Telekom has published a digitization index that shows how well companies and individual industries are implementing digitization. In this context, the logistics sector performed above average. The transport, traffic and logistics sector achieved 61 out of a total of 100 index points. With this, the industry is six points above the overall economic average and is considered a pioneer. The top ten percent of logistics companies even achieved an index of 91 points. According to the study, the logistics industry has consistently implemented the opportunities of digital transformation. Logistics companies are increasingly using digital solutions:…
Also an Underdog included The federal government wants to push ahead with the expansion of the 5G frequency. Until last Friday, companies could apply to the Federal Network Agency. Mobile phone holes and slow internet will soon be a part of the past. After the application deadline, four candidates were on the list. According to insider information from the Federal Network Agency, the German newspaper Handelsblatt reports about Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica. But not only the big players want to participate in the auction for the expansion of the 5G frequencies: the underdog United Internet is also up for…
So far no reaction from Trump It was one of the topics in 2018: the USA’s punitive tariffs against other industrial nations. The steel and aluminum industries in particular were hit by import duties. The EU also responded to steel imports with tariffs in the summer of 2018. Originally, these were only intended to apply provisionally. Now the member states have decided to continue charging these fees – and do so permanently. EU wants to prevent market distortion At present, the additional duty rate is 25 percent. This applies to imports that additionally enter the EU due to US customs…
Cable plant in Mönchengladbach-Rheydt affected The French company Nexans operates several locations in Germany, including Mönchengladbach-Rheydt and Hanover. However, the cable manufacturer plans to cut around 600 jobs. A total of around 100 jobs are to be cut at the factory in Rheydt. A total of 400 people are employed there. Rheinische Post reported on the planned reduction. The company confirmed the announcement to the newspaper on Thursday. The employees had already been informed, the company continued. Nexans lacks profitability But not only will jobs be cut, the strategy of the locations will also be changed. The head office in…
The company is only doing well in the USA Internationally, things are not going well for the US car manufacturer Ford at the moment. The company is slipping more and more into the red in Europe. The reason: high special costs and increasing problems in China and Europe. In the fourth quarter of last year, a loss of around 116 million dollars was calculated, according to the company. In the same period last year, however, a profit of 2.5 billion dollars was achieved. Operating profit fell by 28 percent to $1.5 billion. Even though the figures were weak, the market…
After merger with Karstadt: thousands of jobs in danger According to a report, the employees of the warehouse group Galeria Kaufhof must prepare for job cuts, as these could now follow after the merger with Karstadt. According to the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the head of the joint venture, Stephan Fanderl, said at a management meeting: “In its current state, Galeria Kaufhof is not viable in the long term”. Together, the management decided on a comprehensive restructuring program for the company. The employees were now informed about the risks at a staff meeting. 2,600 jobs affected According to the report, 2,600…
Real could disappear from the market The Real self-service department store chain has been up for sale for months. Now the retail giant Kaufland has announced its interest. The giant wants to take over several of the 287 stores in Germany. The Real self-service department store chain has been up for sale for months. Now the retail giant Kaufland has announced its interest. The giant wants to take over several of the 287 stores in Germany. The newspaper “Lebensmittel Zeitung” reported that Kaufland wanted to take over 100 branches of Real. Kaufland did not give a statement after inquiry of…
The demand of medium-sized businesses for the various services of management consultants also says a lot about the related economic trends. For example, the information chart on the current company figures of the purchasing specialist Kloepfel also reflects clear trends in medium-sized purchasing. Across all companies, the Kloepfel Group acquired a total of 134 new customers in 2018. This is a new record for the full-service purchasing service provider and also shows that purchasing is becoming increasingly important for SMEs. In this article you can read about the biggest challenges and most important trends in purchasing in 2019. 2019 will…
CPFR: Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment If needs are communicated imprecisely along the supply chain, business efficiency suffers. “Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment” provides a remedy. CPFR (Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment) is an inventory management strategy based on supply chain communication and data exchange. CPFR aims to mitigate fluctuations in demand between retailers and manufacturers and, as a result, increase business efficiency. Fluctuations in demand within the supply chain are caused by the so-called “bullwhip effect”. Demand is communicated imprecisely along the supply chain. The more branched the supply chain is, the higher the fluctuations in demand can be…
Admitted: The similarity of beer, diapers and whip is not obvious at first glance. But the terms describe a central problem in supply chain management, especially in risk management. We solve them. The terms beer, diapers and whip belong to the so-called “bullwhip effect” – also called whip effect. This refers to the phenomenon that orders from the supplier cause greater fluctuations than sales to the customer. The demand thus deviates from the actual demand. This fluctuates upstream along the supply chain. In other words, the fluctuations increase towards the origin of the supply chain. This effect illustrates the importance…
“It was always clear to me that I would join one of our family businesses” – Matthias Händle, Partner at PETER MAY Family Business Consulting, in an interview In an interview with Alexander Hornikel, Senior Partner at Kloepfel Consulting, Matthias Händle talks about the importance and advantages of family businesses and the current challenges family-run companies face today. You are a partner at PETER MAY Family Business Consulting GmbH & Co. KG. What was your professional career like? I was born into an entrepreneurial family. My father was the third generation to run an office management company based in Osnabrück.…
In early 2019, Marc Kloepfel and Duran Sarikaya, managing directors of Kloepfel Consulting, took the time to review 2018 and to remember the ups and downs of the past year. They also talked about their goals and intentions for the new year and gave buyers in the middle class important tips that are of particular importance this year. What were your highlights in 2018? Marc Kloepfel: One of our highlights in 2018 was the far-reaching fulfillment of our goals, which we were able to overcome despite difficult procurement markets in 2018 (massive seller market with high price increases and delivery…
In November, the HWWI Commodity Price Index dropped sharply HWWI Commodity Price Index down 12.6% (US dollar base). On monthly average, crude oil price decreased by 18.5%. Sub-Index for food and beverage moved down. (Hamburg) In November, the HWWI fell sharply. The HWWI Total Index reduced by 12.6% (in Euro: -11.7%) to 124.7 points (in Euro: 121.7 points). Thus, the HWWI Commodity Price Index is 7.1% (in Euro: +10.5%) higher than a year ago. The Sub-Index for energy raw materials declined the most. It lowered by 13.9% (in Euro: -13.0%). Crude oil suffered a particularly sharp drop in prices. Crude…
In 1995, Urs Meier received his first “Referee of the Year” award and stood on the field in many decisive football matches. Today, six awards later, he stands on stage and gives lectures at numerous events on the subject of “making decisions”. In this interview, conducted by our senior partner Alexander Hornikel, you will learn what led Urs Meier to his career as a referee, how he set up his own companies and what the connection between football and business is. As a Swiss referee icon you have already played in World Championships and Champions League finals. It was a…
In October, the HWWI Commodity Price Index went slightly up HWWI overall index increased by 1.6% (US dollar base). On monthly average, crude oil price rose by 1.3%. Food and beverage prices rose by 5.0%. (Hamburg, November 13, 2018)In October, the HWWI Commodity Price Index rose again, having risen significantly (sharply) in September. The HWWI’s total index rose by 1.6% (in Euro: +3.1%), to 142.6 points (in Euro: 137.8 points). Strong price in-creases could be registered for the beverages. The sub-index for food and bever-ages rose most strongly by 5.0% (in Euro: 6.6%) after having fallen in recent months. The…
Prices for crude oil and natural gas rose in September HWWI overall index increased by 5.6 % (US dollar basis). Prices for crude oil rose by 6.1%. Food and beverage prices fell by 2.8%. (Hamburg, 09 October 2018) In September, the HWWI raw material price index rose to 140.4 points (in euros: 133.6 points). The index for energy resources rose by 6.5 % (in euros: +5.5 %), with crude oil rising by an average of 6.1 % (in euros: +5.1 %) per month after the price of crude oil fell in August. The industrial raw materials index fell again in…
How do you recognize a liar in a negotiation? Many liars prepare their lies well. They develop a story. Liars who have to spontaneously come up with a lie are more conspicuous. But neither can hide certain signals. Demonstrative honesty – an indication of dizziness Some liars fixate you with their eyes because they believe that a long direct eye contact sends signals of sincerity and attention. But in laid-back conversations you do not fix your opponent like a prey, but also look elsewhere to simply reconsider new conversation content. Excessive and detailed justifications may also indicate a fraud. It…