What P3 North America does

P3 North America is the US automotive and mobility arm of P3 Group, a global technology and engineering consultancy. Rather than making parts, the firm sells engineering hours and consulting programs: it works alongside automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and mobility companies on vehicle development, software-defined vehicles, connected and electric mobility, ADAS, and operational transformation. The company describes its role as taking mobility products from the innovation stage through to full implementation, pairing strategy consulting with hands-on technical and engineering work.

The practice spans the areas that dominate current vehicle programs: autonomous and connected mobility, electrification and e-mobility, Android Automotive and in-vehicle software, and operations and supply-chain management. On the operational side, P3 supports engineering, quality, and production ramp-up for automakers and advanced manufacturers, which puts its consultants close to the launch problems that direct-materials teams live with every day. Buyers who use consultancies like P3 are usually managing the same tension LightSource sees in new product introduction work: getting a program from design intent to a stable, sourced build without slipping the timeline.

Reach and offices

P3 opened its North American automotive headquarters in April 2016, a 25,000 square-foot Mobility Innovation Center in Southfield, Michigan, positioned in the heart of the Detroit automotive ecosystem. At launch the company reported more than 450 automotive and telecommunications experts across North America, with over 120 automotive specialists already based in Michigan, and it set a target of hiring 100 more that year. The Southfield office at 25650 W. 11 Mile Road remains the anchor of the US automotive practice.

Beyond Southfield, P3's US footprint has included offices in the Detroit metro area, Dallas, Greenville and Charleston in South Carolina, and historically a wider set spanning Morristown, Los Angeles, San Jose, Portland, and cross-border locations in Mississauga, Montreal, and Mexico City. The related entity P3 USA Inc lists Greenville, South Carolina as a head office for its engineering, quality, and production ramp-up services. Globally, P3 Group reports several thousand consultants and engineers across roughly 40 locations in more than a dozen countries, and it added a United Kingdom office in 2026.

Ownership and history

P3 Group traces to 1996, when Thomas Prefi, Christoph Theis, and Thomas Weingarten founded it in Aachen, Germany as a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology, out of quality-management work done for the former Daimler-Benz. The group is a privately held, owner-managed GmbH headquartered in Stuttgart. In 2019 the organization split into Umlaut AG and P3 Global GmbH, with the P3 Global side reverting to the P3 Group name in 2020. P3 North America operates as the group's US subsidiary; the group reported EUR 115 million in revenue for 2021, and Forbes named P3 Group one of its World's Best Management Consulting Firms in 2022.

The North American story is more recent. P3 built its US automotive presence during the connected-and-autonomous surge of the mid-2010s, and the Southfield Mobility Innovation Center was pitched at the time as a place where, in the words of its North American chief, "Silicon Valley meets Detroit."

Leadership

Dr. Samit Ghosh has led the North American business as President and CEO, a role he has held since P3 built out its US automotive division, and he was named to the advisory board of Michigan's PlanetM mobility initiative in 2018. Simon Buderath serves as Managing Partner and Site Manager for the Detroit office. Day-to-day, the practice is organized around engineering and consulting teams rather than a manufacturing org chart, which is typical for a firm that bills expertise rather than parts.

Known clients

P3 North America works with automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, technology companies, and mobility startups, but individual client engagements are governed by confidentiality and are rarely named, which is normal for a consultancy. The firm's public positioning centers on the Detroit OEM and supplier base and on emerging mobility players rather than on a published client roster. Where LightSource can document a specific program relationship, it appears here; absent that, the safest read is that P3's client base sits inside the North American automotive and mobility industry it serves from Southfield.

For direct-materials teams, the relevant point is adjacency: engineering consultancies like P3 sit next to the same programs where sourcing, tooling, and supplier readiness decisions get made. A launch that a consultancy is helping stabilize is a launch where the bill of materials and supplier base have to hold up under real production volume.

Frequently asked questions

What does P3 North America do?

P3 North America is the US automotive and mobility consulting and engineering arm of P3 Group. It provides management consulting and engineering services to automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and mobility companies, covering vehicle development, software-defined vehicles, connected and electric mobility, ADAS, and production ramp-up. It does not manufacture parts.

Who owns P3 North America?

P3 North America is a subsidiary of P3 Group GmbH, a privately held, owner-managed technology consultancy headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. P3 Group was founded in 1996 in Aachen as a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology.

Where is P3 North America located?

P3 North America's automotive headquarters is at 25650 W. 11 Mile Road, Suite 300, Southfield, Michigan 48034, in the Detroit metro area. The company opened this Mobility Innovation Center in April 2016 and maintains additional US offices, including Dallas and Greenville, South Carolina.

Who is the CEO of P3 North America?

Dr. Samit Ghosh has served as President and CEO of P3 North America, leading the US automotive division. Simon Buderath is Managing Partner and Site Manager for the Detroit office.

Who are P3 North America's clients?

P3 North America works with automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, technology companies, and mobility startups across the North American automotive industry. Specific client engagements are generally confidential and not publicly named, which is standard practice for an engineering and management consultancy.

How big is P3?

P3 North America reported more than 450 automotive and telecommunications experts in North America as of 2016. Globally, P3 Group reports several thousand consultants and engineers across roughly 40 locations in more than a dozen countries, and it reported EUR 115 million in revenue for 2021.

Last verified September 28, 2026. Is this your company? Request a correction.