How This Woman Is Disrupting The Auto Mechanic Industry

Answers by Patrice Banks, Founder & CEO, Girls Auto Clinic, Author of Glove Box Guide, on Quora:Q: As an entrepreneur, what has been your approach to disrupting a very established industry? I believe I've created a solution to a large problem the automotive industry has not solved and only placed a band-aid on it. My goal is to have the auto industry follow our lead by hiring more women and putting them in positions of influence, power, and ownership. I was paid to speak at an automotive tech school to talk about women in the automotive industry and the 16-year-old boys did not believe I was a mechanic. Q: How does working at the Girls Auto Clinic transform a new female mechanic?

As Auto Industry Transforms, Ford and Volkswagen Consider an Alliance

Traditional automakers have faced increasing pressure in recent years from changed driving habits, the swift development of technology and emerging rivals from Silicon Valley. Volkswagen and Ford, two of the world's biggest carmakers, have announced that they are exploring a strategic alliance, possibly joining forces for an array of projects like the development of vans. "Markets and customer demand are changing at an incredible speed," Thomas Sedran, Volkswagen's head of strategy, said in a statement released Tuesday evening. But it raises the specter of some form of a tie-up as the two companies face a series of issues. In March, BMW and Daimler, two longtime rival German automakers, said they would merge their car-sharing businesses.

A 'Pile-Up of Epic Proportions' Awaits Auto Industry as Investments Necessary to an Electric and Autonomous Future Balloon Just as Market Slows, According to AlixPartners Study

referring to That's according to an exhaustive new study, including a pair of consumer surveys, from AlixPartners, the global consulting firm. On the supplier front, the study finds that while there are great opportunities for suppliers in electrification and autonomy, there are also great risks to be overcome. For instance, the study finds that a quarter or more of supplier revenues are at risk due just to the transition to electrification, particularly in powertrain and exhaust systems—which together represented 26% of supplier revenue last year. And that has to be accomplished in the midst of what is already the beginnings of a cyclical downturn in the market. About AlixPartnersIn today's fast-paced global market, timing is everything.

collected by :Catlin Logan