Out of fear that it is getting left behind in the electric vehicle race, BMW is using shock tactics to scare its employees about what’s on the line.
Bloomberg reports that at a recent company event attended by employees around the world near Munich, the German brand flashed images of Elon Musk as well as electric Mercedes, Porsche and Jaguar models and announced that “We’re in the midst of an electric assault. This must be taken very seriously.” In the past three months, BMW has sent 14,000 engineers, factory managers and marketers into day-long events designed to prepare them for the future of mobility and to discuss everything from batteries to car-sharing applications and laser sensors.
All of this comes in the midst of a push from chief executive Harald Krueger to help guide the brand into the future after slipping behind its rivals in the development of more daring and technologically-advanced models.
According to BMW’s Wolfgang Ober, “We’re either part of this shift, or it goes on without us.”
In 2013, BMW made waves with the introduction of the i3 hatchback and then a year later, the i8 sports car. Since then however, it has trailed behind its rivals in expanding its range of electrified models and only intends on launching two new EVs by 2020.
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