There would be no dividends for at least two years, Wiedeking informed the Porsche family. Meanwhile, Japanese consultants were hired to reorganize the factory floor and management structure of a company that for decades had been an icon of German industrial excellence. And they are not saying this in German or even English, but in Japanese. A visit to the Porsche factory five years later shows just how tough it was. The factory floor looks surprisingly less cluttered than it used to be.
Assembly lines are shorter and simpler.
In practice, that means the labor force has been slashed, productivity has doubled and electronic monitors overhead let employees know how many more cars they must assemble to meet the target for their work shift. With the Zuffenhausen plant running at full capacity, Porsche uses a service company in Finland to assemble part of its Boxster production. There are carrots as well. Bonuses are liberally handed out to workers who come up with money-saving suggestions in the assembly process. Wiedeking stresses that white-collar employees haven't had an easy time of it either during his tenure.