Q-sort Evaluation of Risk Factors by Automotive Experts

Abstract

The high level of standardization within the automotive industry may support avoiding the occurrence of common and unforeseen risks. There are several risk management methods available, but effective actions need to understand current challenges. Automotive risk management requires a comprehensive measure and evaluation approach. The research aims to map the risk factors of managing the automotive industry for preparing a decision support model through a pilot study. The analysis used a list of risk factors based on the literature and idiographic data collection among 22 experts in 2023. The study used the Q-methodology to create characteristic patterns of opinions. Three factors were separated and entitled based on their expressed opinions Factor 1 “Follow Standards!”, Factor 2 “Take Control!” and Factor 3 “Be Flexible!”. Factor 1 respects mostly the automotive standards (e.g., IATF, VDA, and FMEA). Factor 2 consists of opinions to support actions that can increase overall control. Factor 3 supports every aspect to increase flexibility. There is consensus among the three factors on the high importance of Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and proper supplier selection among the respondents. Relative opinions in the field may contribute to developing company-level risk mitigation strategies and understanding supply chain-level challenges. The study confirms the applicability of Q-methodology to discover opinion groups and, therefore, can be considered a novel contribution to the research field, from a methodological perspective.