Introducing Bettina, our Employee of the Month from Knorr-Bremse Truck Services!

We recently had the pleasure of connecting with @Bettina (Neumayer) Tokarski, Team Lead for Product Portfolio Management at Knorr-Bremse AG Truck Services. Bettina shared her inspiring journey in the Automotive Aftermarket, offering a behind-the-scenes look at her role and the industry. Her experiences shed light on the unique opportunities and challenges within this ever-evolving sector.

ABOUT YOU

• Could you tell us a bit about your background? (Place of birth, age, education…)

I was born in Ingolstadt, Germany and grew up in a small village where everyone knew everyone else. After graduating from grammar school, I decided against university studies in favor of vocational training, much to my parents’ dismay. I trained as an industrial clerk at the commercial vehicle manufacturer a leading commercial vehicle manufacturer in Munichin Munich and subsequently took up my first product manager position in aftersales. I went on to complete a bachelor’s degree, but I did so while working, as I enjoyed the job from day one and didn’t want to take a break for years. It is therefore not surprising that I have remained loyal to the field of product management ever since, even though I moved to my current employer Knorr-Bremse almost ten years ago.

ABOUT THE AFTERMARKET

• How would you describe the Aftermarket to someone who has never heard of this industry?

I think the aftermarket is often underestimated. You only serve the market with spare parts that are already available -but the aftermarket is much more! The aftermarket is a multi-layered and diverse industry. It’s not just about selling parts or services, it’s about offering solutions to maintain the mobility of vehicles. And the individuality of each vehicle and its operator gives this industry a color that makes every day of my job so incredibly colorful. No two days are the same. Every day brings new challenges.

ABOUT YOU & THE AFTERMARKET

• How did you become aware of, and why did you choose the Aftermarket to work in?

It was a mixture of family background and fate. I grew up with the commercial vehicle aftermarket. My father worked in a commercial vehicle workshop for his entire career – starting as an apprentice in commercial vehicle mechanics and working his way up to operations manager. As a result, my brother and I came into contact with commercial vehicles and workshops at an early age and it was always a highlight when Dad “had to take us for a quick drive round the workshop”. We knew his colleagues and the company. We were fascinated by the large vehicles and the technology. The older we got, the more we talked about it at home. It’s hardly surprising that both my brother and I were drawn to the automotive industry. As fate would have it, however, in my case it was also a company in the commercial vehicle sector that accepted my application for an apprenticeship.

ABOUT YOUR COMPANY

• Which company are you working with & which type of job?

I work at Knorr-Bremse TruckServices as Team Lead Product Portfolio Management.

ABOUT YOUR JOB

• What’s your job title?

Team Lead Product Portfolio Management

• How would you describe your job?

As product portfolio managers, we manage the products in the aftermarket over their entire life cycle. This means we are involved in their development for the original equipment, plan their market launches as replacement parts in the aftermarket, monitor and shape their development right through to phase-out. As a result, we are networked with almost all competences in the company and form a link between technology and sales. As these two areas often speak different languages, we act as interpreters here, i.e. translating the technical context into sales-relevant documentation and trying to translate the customer or market requirements for the product into technical requirements. We also track and manage the development of the products in the market – which in our case means many very different markets, as we are responsible for the EMEA region.

• What do you fancy most in your job?

Working with so many different people and – thanks to my employer – so many different cultures. Every day brings new perspectives on the constantly changing aftermarket and thus the task of preparing or adapting our products and services for it.

ABOUT JOINING THE AFTERMARKET

• Why should somebody join this industry in your opinion?

I think the aftermarket is a good place to be if you are looking for variety and like challenges.