Welcome to #DelphiTalks!
Interview no.6
We caught up with Oksana Murrell, Market Intelligence Manager at PHINIA, to hear what sparked her interest in the automotive aftermarket and what keeps her inspired in this fast-moving industry. From balancing global trends with local realities to navigating the shift toward electrification, Oksana shares her take on what’s shaping the aftermarket today - and what’s coming next. With experience across a range of industries and a passion for data-driven strategy, she brings a fresh and insightful perspective to the conversation.
Oksana, tell us what drew you into automotive aftermarket research, and what excites you most about this field?
Before joining the automotive aftermarket company I worked for an investment fund, which given me exposure to the wide range of industries – from Shipbuilding to Confectionary. Automotive aftermarket stands out as one of the most resilient industries – world can go through the crisis, but automotive aftermarket carries on “business as usual”. It’s consistent performance, adaptability and creativity to remain relevant despite technological, consumer and legislative challenges is what excites me about the aftermarket. Engineering solutions in response to sustainability expectations, wide range of services for the customers and user-generated innovations guarantee that as long as we have vehicles on our roads, automotive aftermarket will be present in the evolving world.
How important is it to balance global research with regional/local market insights?
The balance is absolutely paramount for any successful research project. We see global research as an essential multi-dimensional function, scope of which is to identify the scale and chart the direction of the study. But reality happens on the ground, locally, in the regions and countries, where the real conditions test the relevance and embrace the adoption of any given global direction. Local markets act as a reality check for any global high-level conclusions and recommendations, converting ideas into reality, ensuring consistent profitable growth.
What major trends are shaping the automotive aftermarket today from a research perspective?
Automotive aftermarket today continues to evolve and adapt following automotive industry evolution. Quoting Roland Berger Research, Automotive world is Polarized – from globalization to regionalization, Automated from human to artificial intelligence, Connected - from horsepower to terabytes and Electrified - from internal combustion vehicles to electric ones. For the Aftermarket it means, that it has to support ageing vehicles running on conventional fuel, and at the same time develop early solutions for the electrified vehicles, provide multi-tier parts and services for the budget vehicles and for the “spaceships on wheels”, fight geopolitical challenges to maintain efficient supply chain and develop innovative solutions to generate profit and keep end users happy. It takes a lot of cogs to run in perfect harmony to ensure the aftermarket business remains successful.
What are the biggest challenges in collecting reliable aftermarket data across diverse regions?
We are very lucky to have knowledgeable marketing colleagues in the regions. We may speak different languages and focus on our day to day tasks, but when the joint effort required, everyone is helping as much as they can. Our annual update of the market size model parameters is the perfect example of pulling together inputs of over 80 people across the globe to generate the market forecast for the markets and products we sell.
How do your findings influence PHINIA’s product development strategy?
Global market intelligence function is responsible for ensuring our knowledge of market trends, customer expectations and product evolution translate into the reliable profitable business for PHINIA. Big part of this work is to keep leadership and business up to date with the trends and insights. We share updates through monthly newsletters, statistical bulletins and ad hoc publications from the reputable sources. We also work closely with our colleagues from OE side of the business, ensuring that ONE PHINIA strategy works from the intelligence sharing perspective.
If you had to describe the aftermarket of the future in three words, what would they be, and why?
Diverse, Resilient, Customer-Driven. Each one of 1.7 billion vehicles on the road will interact with automotive aftermarket at some point on its journey “from cradle to grave”. Being resilient to external challenges, at the same time diverse to deliver the best customer experience will be key factors for the future success of the aftermarket products and services.
Thank you, Oksana, for sharing your insights and passion for the automotive aftermarket!
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