When Algorithms Make Decisions
Interview mit Jan Haemer und Oyku Elmas, Simon-Kucher & Partners
The chemical industry is entering a new phase of transformation. After years of margin pressure and sustainability demands, companies are rethinking their value creation. The next shift is less visible—and more disruptive: the way decisions are made. While the previous phase accelerated innovation, the focus now is on accelerating decision-making. AI in commercial processes is thus shifting from a competitive advantage to a prerequisite for competitiveness, as explained by the two Simon-Kucher experts Jan Haemer and Oyku Elmas.
CHEManager: Is digitalization in the chemical industry still primarily about efficiency?
Jan Haemer: That was the dominant view for a long time. Today, the central question is: Who makes better and faster commercial decisions?
What does that mean in concrete terms?
Oyku Elmas: Markets no longer operate on reporting cycles. The focus is on early detection of trends and real-time control.
J. Haemer: Companies are thus shifting from retrospective explanations to closing gaps early on. Pricing and sales decisions are becoming continuous. Speed is becoming a competitive factor.
Why is this shift happening right now?
J. Haemer: Especially in Europe, growth is driven more by market share and customer proximity than by volume, while margins remain under pressure.
O. Elmas: The challenge is no longer identifying use cases, but scaling them. A clear divide is emerging between companies that integrate AI and those that continue to experiment.
Are we moving toward a world of “bots buying from bots”?
O. Elmas: In parts of the market, yes. For standardized purchases, systems can already automatically compare offers and trigger orders. Companies need to understand how these systems make decisions—and optimize processes accordingly.
J. Haemer: But that doesn’t apply everywhere. Even with petrochemical building blocks, while the transaction is automated, companies aren’t just buying a molecule. They’re buying reliability and support in the event of a disruption. That’s why this part of the business remains hybrid. Everything without clear added value gets automated—and what remains becomes more important.
What does this mean for commercial processes?
"AI-based revenue management systems provide pricing recommendations in real time."
O. Elmas: Pricing is becoming more dynamic, sales more data-driven, and customer management more proactive. Daily implementation is key.
J. Haemer: This requires a transformation of the order-to-cash process. Instead of periodic campaigns, event-driven models are emerging. Leading indicators such as declining order volumes can directly trigger sales measures. AI-based revenue management systems provide pricing recommendations in real time.
Why is progress so uneven?
"Today, companies compete for every single transaction."
J. Haemer: Because market dynamics have changed faster than organizations. The industry comes from a world where customers waited. This mindset still persists to some extent.
O. Elmas: Today, companies compete for every single transaction. This requires a significantly more proactive and data-driven approach.
What sets the winners apart?
O. Elmas: Winners focus on a few business-critical use cases and scale them consistently. They prioritize implementation over experimentation.
J. Haemer: In the future, the decisive dividing line will not run between companies with and without AI. Rather, it will run between those who act based on data—and those who merely analyze it.
Jan Haemer
Partner, Simon-Kucher
Oyku Elmas
Senior Partner, Simon-Kucher
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