Mike Hawes became SMMT chief executive on 2 September, 2013 and has more than 20 years experience in policy and public affairs, the majority of which have been spent in the motor industry. He joined SMMT from Bentley Motors where he held a number of PR, corporate and public affairs roles.
The new chief executive joins at a particularly encouraging time for the industry. Only recently came evidence of British motor industry strength with SMMT data showing output rising 16.2% in August to 91,282 units, up 12,705 units compared to the same month a year before.
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That third successive monthly gain pushed year to date volume up 3.1% to 984,545 units.
Prior to that, he also worked for both Toyota and, more recently, Bentley’s parent company, Volkswagen. Simon Warburton spoke to him at the SMMT’s recent Open Forum day bringing together suppliers, Automotive Council members and the UK government.
j-a: How do you see the role of the SMMT and can it facilitate access to key elements such as finance?
MH: The SMMT is a broad church and a lot of what it has been doing is to promote the UK motor industry in all its forms.
The challenges we have at the moment are myriad. There are tremendous opportunities for the supply chain. Access to finance is still an issue.
We have been working with some of the banks and the BBA [British Banking Association] to [discuss] some of these problems but that is still in progress.
j-a: Will you be looking to build on existing dialogue with the UK government as the administration looks to back the automotive sector in terms of employment?
MH: Part of my role at Bentley included government relations so I do have an understanding of how the UK government operates. It is important the government maintains the rhetoric.
This is opening a tremendous amount of opportunity for the entire industry. The government wants to make the most of this opportunity – the UK is the only market in western Europe that is up.
In 2008, we saw great support for manufacturing and the importance of exports for the UK economy. The initiative was continued in the coalition government and we saw the creation of an industrial strategy which put growth at the heart of the UK.
j-a: Other European countries have praised the role of the SMMT and the British government in promoting the auto sector – have you been aware of that?
MH: What [was] noticeable – I was at Frankfurt [motor show] and you talk to European automotive companies and they are [aware] of what is going on in the UK and are aware of the Automotive Council.
That was not the case two to three years ago. It will take time to change perceptions, but we are seeing the fruits of that work.
We have contacts in the VDA and the issues the UK industry faces are not unique to the UK, so where we can work together, it would make sense to do so. The SMMT is [also] represented on the [European automotive supplier association] CLEPA board.
j-a: How do you see the auto sector fitting into the UK economic landscape?
MH: [The] automotive industry is critical for the UK economy and whatever the government of whatever political hue should have the importance of the UK automotive industry for the country.
It is recognised automotive is a significant employer – whenever you see a major investment – Jaguar Land Rover [for example] creating 1,000 jobs and four to five times that in the supply chain.
The UK has had success with investment decisions, which all serve to create additional jobs – that is recognised by government. It remains a growing and successful industry.
As the SMMT, we are not resting on our laurels as people take advantage of the opportunities.
j-a: What about attracting people into studying engineering as a career – what’s your view?
MH: We are not educational providers, but we do what we can to promote cars, manufacturing and engineering. It is about attracting people – men and particularly women who are under-represented because it is a great place to have a career.
