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8 FROM THE TOP » DIETER BECKER, KPMG May 2018 | AutoData D ieter Becker, fromGermany, is currently the main global executive of KPMGin the automotive field. He accu- mulates 24 years of experience in the segment and has participated in several projects for companies in the industry assisted by the consultancy, whether automakers, systems analysts or suppliers. He assisted in several projects, eva- luating from product strategies to mergers and acquisitions, through marketing, human resources, fi- nance and manufacturing. His routine is basically on bo- ard airplanes: last month he was in Brazil for a week, where he held three meetings with executives of automotive companies and asso- ciation leaders, in the morning, af- ternoon and night, every day. Then he returned to Germany, his base, fromwhere he would go to Japan and then to the Middle East and the United States. In this exclusive interview with AutoData ,Becker he told its un- derstandings about the future of the industry, and particularly the Brazilian one, in face of global challenges and contexts. His opi- nion will certainly cause a lot of astonishment and possibly denial. Nowonder as himself says it: what stands out today in the automotive sector is not necessarily a techno- logical challenge, but a change of mentality. Interview with Márcio Stéfani and Marcos Rozen It is not the technology. It is the mentality. and Mercosur sowe don’t have only one growth unit globally. So with this beginning of recovery that we live, does Brazil have a prominent role again globally speaking? Uncertainty is something that people don’t like. The big advantage of China is: you have a five-year plan and you know exactly what it is going to happen. So, what is the five-year plan for Brazil now? I am not talking about only Rota 2030 but it is more like the question: What is the strategy of Brazil to position itself in the global market? In 1997, my first year here ,I really saw a good scenario in the commercial vehicles and small cars. That could be a huge growth if we can afford the infrastructure, if we have the industrial footprint, if we see high income levels. So what we think is: what is the future strategy which we can re- A few years ago Brazil was mentioned as a big star in the global automotive market and today that concept has fal- len. Howdoes theworld see the current situation in Brazil? If you look at the global market you will see that we are really looking for growth areas that are not only in China. So, the desire of companies is having one or two additional marketswherewe really could see growth.We do know that inAfrica, we are not seeing any kind of progression so it is not going to be the place in the near future, and we know that the American US market is getting to the top. If the only growth is coming from Southeast Asia and China that’s the big problemwe see. When the economy here in Brazil dropped, it was really a shock, specially because the drop-downwas dramatic to all of these global companies. Wewould love to see growth coming from Brazil