So what changed?
In this special episode of the Automotive Leaders Podcast, Jan Griffiths sits down with Dr. Angela Johnson of Plante Moran and Sig Huber of Elm Analytics to unpack the latest Working Relations Index (WRI) results and what they reveal about the future of supplier relationships in the automotive industry.
From tariffs and EV disruption to “permacrisis fatigue” and culture change, this conversation goes deep into the forces reshaping OEM and supplier collaboration.
The discussion also explores the impact of leadership behavior, trust, transparency, return-to-office policies, organizational memory, and why collaboration can no longer be optional in a volatile supply chain environment.
If you work in automotive purchasing, supply chain, supplier quality, operations, or leadership, this episode is essential listening.
Episode Highlights
00:01:21 Reflecting on the WRI Results
00:05:10 Permacrisis and Collaboration
00:09:36 The 6C Framework Explained
00:12:40 Ford’s Supplier Relationship Turnaround
00:14:57 Stellantis and the Challenge of Consistency
00:18:57 GM’s Culture Shift
00:23:47 Resilience vs. Cost Reduction
00:25:38 Cross-Functional Alignment Breakdown
00:30:37 Organizational Memory and Cultural Inertia
00:32:49 Why Collaboration Beats Brute Force
00:34:13 Supplier Fatigue and Communication Overload
00:36:00 Return-to-Office Impact on Supplier Relationships
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