“We Are Not the Center of the World in Germany. We Can All Learn With and From Each Other”

Dr. Carina Kögler has been Head of Production Planning at Porsche AG since September 2023. Prior to that, she was responsible for Corporate Protection and Real Estate at Audi AG. As the head of Production Planning, she and her team have the responsible task of overseeing the introduction of new vehicles – from conception through to series production. In an interview with “keep in touch”, she talks about her daily activities, her career so far, the challenges involved in planning the production of future car models, and some great moments during her time at university.

Carina Kögler completed the Metallurgy and Materials Engineering degree program at RWTH’s Institute of Metallurgical Process Engineering and Metal Recycling (IME) in 1995.

Mrs. Kögler, you have been Head of Production Planning at Porsche since September 2023. What exactly does production planning mean? And what are your responsibilities in this role?

In production planning, we are responsible for the conception of production processes and the production-oriented design of future cars. We thus have an influence on the design of our products during the development process, facilitating their efficient integration into our Porsche plants in Stuttgart Zuffenhausen and Leipzig, as well as into the VW Group plants in Bratislava and Osnabrück. To this end, we are in constant communication with various functions within the company, such as the Development Department.

Interdisciplinary and interdepartmental collaboration is essential in this process: Production strategies can only be developed together with colleagues from other departments. First of all, there are developers who design the new vehicles and define the vehicle technologies to be used. Together with the sales department, various product characteristics are defined, such as the desired driving characteristics, the performance of the car, and its design. Our colleagues in sales determine the target group for a new model and how many units should be sold. Based on this information, we determine, for example, the size of the production facilities and the sequence in which the vehicles are assembled from their individual components. The interaction of all these parties is very important, but at the same time it requires a lot of coordination and communication. My department is involved in all processes from the initial idea to series production, keeping an eye on technology, production, costs, logistics, and the general time frame.

What I find particularly exciting about Porsche is the range of our offerings. On the one hand, we are constantly developing our sports icon, the Porsche 911. But we have also expanded our product range to include sporty saloons. And, of course, sustainability has become an important topic for us. We have been building the Taycan electric car at our home base in Zuffenhausen since 2019.

Do you also visit the production facilities? Or how does your typical working day look like?

I would actually prefer to be on site in production all the time. I spend most of my working time planning and coordinating the activities at our production facilities with other departments. For a large part of my working life, I have been responsible for direct production departments, and I was on site in production every day. I would still love to do that, but unfortunately my job no longer allows it.

However, I believe it is an important basis for what we are working on to have an understanding of what is actually feasible in production. Just sitting in front of a computer when planning production does not give you an idea about what is possible and not possible. In this respect, close contact with production is very important. In my current role, I represent production on various committees, where my many years of experience in production are really helpful.

Do you still have links to RWTH in your current position?

Yes, I am still in touch with some of my fellow students. This year also marks the 125th anniversary of my former institute, the Institute for Metallurgical Process Engineering and Metal Recycling, or IME for short. There will be a celebration in May and I will also be there. I’m really looking forward to it!

Currently we do not have any projects with RWTH, but we share many research interests and topics with universities, for example we’re interested in the recycling of metals and closed loops – topics of great relevance to automotive manufacturing. At Porsche, we offer positions for students who are completing their bachelor's and master's theses with us, offering them insights into practice. It is very important to me to support young students.

You have just mentioned recycling and closed loops. In your previous position at Audi, you were responsible for environmental protection in the company, among other things. How do environmental protection and the automotive industry go together?

It is essential that we have as little impact as possible on the environment when manufacturing cars. Although process water and scrap, for example, are produced, these are collected and returned to the cycle.

A concrete example from my current position is the planning of individual parts. If you want to make a car and produce a door for it, for example, you first need a straight sheet of metal. This must be reshaped and cut to size. This results in leftovers, so-called offcuts. We optimize the trims for maximum material utilization. What is then left over as residual material for process reasons is sent for recycling.

Insights Into Production at Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG.

You also worked in China for some time. How important are international relations for your daily work and for automotive manufacturing in general?

In general, I think it is very important for young people to have a broad base of experience and to work internationally as part of their professional development. As a student, I completed an internship in Canada and, at a later time, I wrote a student research project in England. This was valuable in terms of getting to know the country and its people and improving my English.

When you have lived abroad for a while as a young person, you learn how interesting it is to see Germany from the outside. We are not the center of the world in Germany – there are many countries where new things are developed, showing innovative capacity and diligence. We are part of the big picture and must be prepared to learn with and from each other.
Taking an outside perspective sharpens the focus for many internal things – both professionally and privately. And it also shows how good we have it in Germany. After my doctorate, I lived in Zimbabwe for a while. There was no drinking water from the tap, sometimes the water was even turned off.

I was just 30 years old when I lived in Zimbabwe. Later, when my children were small, I mainly worked in Germany. At the age of 50, I was once again deployed abroad, in China, as a plant manager. I don't regret a single day, even though I was there for a year during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was difficult because it meant I was separated from my family for ten months. I focused on my work and learned a lot about the culture and working methods in China. That was extremely enriching. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

How did you enter the automotive industry after completing your degree in metallurgy? You're more likely to find mechanical engineers there. And you mentioned the use of metals in automotive manufacturing. What’s the story here – was it due to your expertise in metalwork that you entered the automotive sector?

I first worked in process engineering for a manufacturer of plant technology for the chemical industry. At first glance, this seemed to be a better fit with my professional background. A few years later, I ended up in the automotive industry by chance because there was an interesting job vacancy in the area of corrosion protection.

Other positions in automotive engineering included working in technical development at Audi's aluminum center, as production section manager in body construction for the Audi A6, and finally as head of the planning department for the production of individual parts and add-on parts (doors and flaps). All of these roles are well-suited for someone with a background in metallurgy.

And we don't just have mechanical engineers in our production planning department. The professional careers and specialist backgrounds in automotive production are very diverse. We have a lot of chemists, especially in the paint shop. We also employ mathematicians, physicists and, for example, civil engineers for the many buildings in our factories. As a metallurgist, you’re not on your own either: In my career, I have met several former fellow students with the same specialist background, both at Audi and at Porsche.

You have a responsible senior-level position at Porsche. And you also held a senior management position at Audi. Did you have to overcome any hurdles in your career?

Of course, but then I guess that not many career paths travel a straight line. Actually, I encountered a hurdle even before I started my studies: I wanted to do an internship in a lead smelter in my home town of Stolberg. I applied for a job there but then I was told that I would not be allowed to work in the lead smelter as a woman because of the risk of heavy metals, which are mutagenic. I needed a special permit to do a six-week internship there.

After finishing this internship, I pursued my studies and subsequently completed my doctorate. Some colleagues in the lead smelter told me: “It's not a job for a woman. If you go to university, don't think that you can come back here to be our boss.” That's why I thought I should focus on theory rather than practice. And it was the reason I decided to do a doctorate. Gradually, I developed the desire to work in industry. Back then, in 1994/95, the job market for engineers was very tough. At the same time, I was offered to complete my post-doctoral lecturing qualification - or habilitation, but the desire to put my knowledge into practice was greater. I greatly enjoyed my time at RWTH and was happy to pursue my doctorate, but obtaining a habilitation would have been one step too far into theory for me.

During my doctorate, I went to Zimbabwe twice to help out at the University of Zimbabwe. After my doctorate, I was asked if I wanted to work there on a long-term basis. I did that for a year to gain more experience abroad. After that, I received various job offers. The company I joined was looking for someone with international experience. I traveled a lot in that job as well, which opened many more doors.

A smaller hurdle was to combine family and career. My husband also studied at RWTH – we are both engineers – and it was always important to us that we could both pursue our careers. We often organized childcare outside the family, which wasn't easy at the time, but in the end we managed very well.

Since starting at Audi 22 years ago in a junior role, I have climbed the career ladder. After four years, I moved up into management, and now I'm in top management at Porsche.

You studied and did your doctorate at RWTH, so you liked it here. Why did you choose RWTH?

I was already familiar with Aachen and knew that the city was beautiful. And Aachen is the best city ever for students. Even at the time, the University was considered to be prestigious and Aachen was the right size for me. Metallurgy was also the perfect field of study for me.

So you were interested in metals even before your studies?

I've always loved gold. If my parents hadn't been able to support my studies, I would have become a goldsmith. What particularly fascinates me about metals is the changeability of the material. By adding different alloying elements, the properties of metal can be varied over a wide range. This continues to fascinate me to this day.

The University would have invited you to celebrate your Silver Doctoral Anniversary in 2021, but unfortunately the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Do you have any special memories of your time at RWTH?

Although my parents lived nearby, I moved to Aachen, on my father's recommendation. He said that as a student you also have to live in the city where you are studying. He was absolutely right about that. At my institute, we were offered exciting excursions and field trips, always lasting one to two weeks in the summer. We visited factories and companies and gained insights into our future working world.

Although our Doctoral Anniversary was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am now very much looking forward to the 125th anniversary celebrations of the IME in May and to seeing all my former fellow students again.

What are your plans for the future? Could you imagine working abroad again?

I think everyone who has ever been abroad wants to do it again. So yes, generally I can imagine going abroad again. But now I've only been at Porsche for six months and I'm concentrating on my new responsibilities. I think it's important to stay in a position for a longer period of time – only then you can reap what you have sown. So going abroad is not in the picture right now. But generally I am open to it.

And what about a role in academia? You decided against completing a habilitation, so teaching is not your thing?

You should never say never. However, teaching is currently not an option for me. Of course, I'm always happy to give a guest lecture here and there. Dialogue between industry and research is very important.

Thank you very much for the nice and informative interview, Dr. Kögler!

– Author: Siba Fitzau. The interview was held in February 2024.