The Volkswagen Group has announced an enhanced global collaboration with CGI, a leading business and IT consulting firm, to strengthen its IT infrastructure and accelerate digital transformation. This strategic partnership includes the launch of a new entity, MARV1N, dedicated to expediting software development and modernizing Volkswagen’s IT systems.
Modernizing Volkswagen’s IT Landscape
Volkswagen aims to overhaul its IT system landscape by 2026, replacing numerous legacy systems with fewer, more robust, and scalable solutions across the Group. This modernization is expected to streamline processes and significantly reduce IT-related operating costs. The collaboration with CGI is a pivotal step in enhancing Volkswagen’s software development capabilities to meet these ambitious objectives.
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Introduction of MARV1N
As part of this collaboration, Volkswagen and CGI have launched MARV1N, an international development unit focused on Group-wide digitalization projects. MARV1N is designed to support Volkswagen’s developers, enabling faster and more efficient development of new IT systems. This initiative underscores Volkswagen’s commitment to building a powerful, cross-brand, and scalable system landscape for the future.
Strategic Objectives and Benefits
The deepened collaboration with CGI aims to secure the increasing demand for software development performance within the Volkswagen Group. By integrating CGI’s expertise, Volkswagen anticipates several benefits:
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Accelerated Development Processes: MARV1N’s dedicated software expertise is expected to speed up development timelines, allowing for quicker implementation of new IT systems.
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Enhanced Knowledge Retention: Long-term collaboration on projects will enable teams to acquire a deep understanding of Volkswagen’s core processes and software products, ensuring valuable know-how remains within the company.
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Improved Efficiency: The partnership aims to make the organization more efficient as an internal software solutions developer, aligning with Volkswagen’s transformation plan to enhance in-house performance.
Focus on Technical Development
Initially, MARV1N’s teams are concentrating on projects related to Technical Development, a crucial area in Volkswagen’s digitalization efforts. The primary goal is to accelerate data-driven function development for new vehicle projects. For example, a new cross-company IT system is being designed to consolidate data of all requirements related to electrical/electronic architecture and software functions, spanning from pre-series development to after-sales service. This central data management approach is expected to lead to faster development times for software updates and new digital products, such as Functions on Demand, enhancing the customer experience.
Leadership Perspectives
Hauke Stars, Board Member at Volkswagen Group for IT, emphasized the importance of this collaboration, stating, “For the development and production of modern products, we need modern IT systems. At the Volkswagen Group, we are therefore working on our system landscape of the future: powerful, cross-brand, and scalable.” He further noted that the partnership with CGI is a significant step toward meeting the growing demand for software development performance within the Group.
François Boulanger, CGI President and CEO, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, saying, “Through this strategic partnership, we will further deepen our strong relationship with Volkswagen as we collaborate to accelerate Volkswagen Group’s business outcomes in line with their digitalization vision and strategy.” He highlighted that CGI’s architects, developers, and consultants will deliver services and solutions grounded in both technology expertise and knowledge of manufacturing business processes, bringing proven best practices, global capabilities, and technology innovation to the initiative.
Conclusion
The enhanced collaboration between Volkswagen Group and CGI represents a strategic move to modernize Volkswagen’s IT infrastructure, accelerate software development, and reduce operating costs. The establishment of MARV1N as an international development unit underscores the commitment to digital transformation and positions Volkswagen to better meet the demands of the evolving automotive industry. This partnership exemplifies how strategic collaborations can drive innovation and efficiency in large-scale organizations.
