Digital Strategy for 1.2 Million Members

Branche

Unternehmensgröße

Eingesetzte KI Fähigkeiten

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Herausforderung

When the Core Service Loses Relevance

The mobility industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation. Four megatrends are reshaping the playing field: demographic change, digitalization, urbanization, and environmental awareness. For an automobile club with over 100 years of history, this raises an existential question: How relevant is roadside assistance in a world where private car ownership is declining?

ADAC Hansa serves approximately 1.2 million members in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. The business model rests on several pillars: membership with roadside assistance, insurance, driver safety training, travel services, and retail. But the core service — roadside assistance — is entirely tied to the automobile. In a shrinking market, powerful competitors like car manufacturers and tech giants are defending their positions.

At the same time, the traditional organization lacks a pronounced culture of change. Complex stakeholder structures and dependency on central ADAC decisions make rapid action difficult. Leadership recognized: adaptation isn't enough. To stay relevant, you have to actively shape the transformation.

ADAC Hansa commissioned PLAN D to develop a digital strategy together with the leadership team — not a PowerPoint presentation from the outside, but a participatory process supported by the entire organization.

Herausforderung

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Lösung

Three Pillars for a Future Beyond the Automobile

Environmental Analysis and Strategy Process

PLAN D began with a systematic analysis of the competitive environment. The four megatrends — demographic change, digitalization, urbanization, and environmental awareness — were examined for their concrete impact on each pillar of the business model. The SWOT analysis made the situation clear: strong brand and solid finances on one side, lacking change culture and complex decision structures on the other.

Instead of an external strategy recommendation, PLAN D chose a participatory approach. Four work packages — customer processes, sales processes, internal administration, and data — were worked on in parallel, each with involvement from the responsible executives. Each package resulted in concrete recommendations and a roadmap.

The Three-Pillar Framework

The heart of the digital strategy is a differentiated framework that defines different investment logics for different business areas. Areas directly tied to the automobile whose decline is foreseeable are harvested in a controlled manner — resources are freed up rather than invested in shrinking markets. Areas with future potential receive consistent investment in digitalization, data strategy, and AI. For entirely new business models, the framework recommends controlled experiments and lighthouse projects.

A central element is the consolidation of data sources into a 360-degree customer view. With 1.2 million members, there's enormous potential in systematically utilizing existing data — for sales pre-qualification, personalized offers, and a "Next Best Offer" system. As early as 2019, AI was identified as a potential technology for these initiatives.

Change Management

Strategy is only as good as its acceptance. PLAN D facilitated accompanying sounding boards with employees from various hierarchical levels. The goal was to identify resistance early, win multipliers, and formulate the strategy in a way that would be embraced by the organization.

“I really appreciated working with PLAN D. I find the team's ability to integrate the various hierarchies of our company into the project in an appreciative and effective manner.”

Andrea Jaite

Vertriebsleiterin und stellv. Geschäftsführerin

ADAC Hansa

Ergebnis

Radical Strategy, Broad Acceptance

At the end of the four-month process, there was a digital strategy that was as radical as it was internally accepted. Feedback from the sounding boards was clear: employees didn't just want to implement — they were curious about the change. Leadership committed clearly to execution.

The strategy defined concrete next steps: new leadership positions for Digital Transformation and Innovation, a roadmap for digitalizing core processes, and clear investment priorities according to the three-pillar framework.

Particularly noteworthy from today's perspective: As early as 2019, AI was identified as a strategic lever — years before generative AI went mainstream. The recommendation at the time to use AI for data consolidation, customer analysis, and sales pre-qualification was ahead of its time.

Zahlen & Fakten

100%

approval from sounding board and leadership

3

strategic pillars with differentiated investment logic

4

months from analysis to strategy

~1,2 Mio.

members in the region

Techologie

So haben wir es umgesetzt

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FAQs

What is a digital strategy?

A digital strategy defines how a company uses digital technologies to achieve its business objectives. It encompasses more than IT: it's about business models, processes, data, and organizational structure. A good digital strategy answers the question: What role do digital technologies play in our competitiveness — today and in five years?

How do you develop a digital strategy?

An effective digital strategy emerges in three steps: First, an honest analysis of the environment and your own strengths and weaknesses. Second, defining concrete areas of action with clear priorities. Third, a participatory process that ensures the strategy is supported by the organization. PowerPoint strategies that disappear in desk drawers help no one.

What role does AI play in a digital strategy?

AI is not an end in itself, but a tool for concrete goals: better decisions through data analysis, more efficient processes through automation, personalized customer engagement through pattern recognition. A good digital strategy identifies where AI creates real value — and where traditional digitalization is sufficient.

What is the three-pillar framework for digital strategies?

The framework distinguishes three types of business areas: "Known Knowns" (predictably declining areas — harvest in a controlled manner), "Known Unknowns" (future-viable areas — digitalize consistently), and "Unknown Unknowns" (entirely new possibilities — experiment in a controlled way). Each pillar requires a different investment logic.

Why does a mobility association need a digital strategy?

The mobility industry is changing fundamentally. Electric mobility, autonomous driving, sharing models, and new competitors like tech giants are challenging traditional business models. Anyone who continues to rely on roadside assistance for combustion engines will lose relevance. A digital strategy shows how existing strengths — member base, brand, trust — can be transferred to new business areas.

How do you involve employees in a strategy process?

Through sounding boards and participatory workshops. Employees from various hierarchical levels are involved early — not to rubber-stamp, but to provide genuine feedback. This increases acceptance and uncovers blind spots. A strategy developed without the organization will fail because of the organization.

What distinguishes PLAN D from traditional strategy consultancies?

PLAN D only recommends what we can also implement ourselves. We combine strategy development with technical implementation expertise in AI and data. That means: No recommendations that fail in reality. And when a strategy leads to an AI project, we can build and operate it ourselves.

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