Toyota Motor Corporation: Strategies and Analysis

This assignment delves into a comprehensive analysis of Toyota Motor Corporation. It examines various aspects of the company, including its strategic approaches, operational models like Lean Manufacturing, cultural values, and global expansion strategies. The document also explores Toyota's impact on the automotive sector and its contributions to sustainable development within the industry.

INTERGRATING TECHNOLOGY IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
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Affiliate Institution
Date

Table of Contents
INTODUCTION............................................................................................................................3
DISCUSSION.................................................................................................................................4
TOYOTA COMPANY..............................................................................................................4
Globalization Strategies...........................................................................................................4
Manufacturing Technology Interface.......................................................................................5
Marketing Technology Interface..............................................................................................5
Organization Technology Interface..........................................................................................6
GENERAL MOTORS...............................................................................................................6
Globalization Strategy..............................................................................................................6
Manufacturing Technology Interface.......................................................................................7
Marketing Technology Interface..............................................................................................7
Organization Technology Interface..........................................................................................8
COMPARISON..........................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES............................................................................................................................10

INTODUCTION
Toyota Motor Corporation is an international business that specializes on the manufacture,
production and sale of automotive appliances. It is actually Japanese multinational automotive
company in the automotive industry whose headquarters are based Aichi, Japan. The company
operates in more than 26 countries in the world with over 50 stores or rather locations overseas
(Nkomo, 2013). From history, Toyota is the world’s largest and oldest automotive manufacturer,
besides being listed in the top ten companies in relation to revenue earned per year. Being a
multinational company, Toyota has employed more than 340, 000 skilled, experienced and
knowledgeable employees all over the world. Since when it was started back in 1937 by Kiichiro
Toyoda, the company has been increasing and improving its performance and productivity year
after year (New, 2007). Toyota has been named as one of the top most ranked companies that
have manufactured the most number of cars since they were commenced. The vehicles of the
company are sold in over 170 countries in the world.
General Motors Company, also known as the GM is a multinational company that operates from
Detroit, Michigan, US. The company was founded in 1908 by William C. Durant. GM Company
specializes on the production and manufacture of automotive appliances which it sells all over
the world(Twarowska and Kąkol, 2013). In addition to manufacturing, the company also designs,
markets and distributes both vehicle spare parts and vehicles themselves. The business operates
in most of the technologically developed countries like in China Russia, Pakistan, India and
USA. The company is currently listed as one of the largest developing automotive businesses in
the world especially after being termed as the largest automotive manufacture in the world from
1931-2007. For the company to stay as on going, it has always been updated when it comes to

technology usage and advancement (Chibafa, 2016). GM’s product quality improves when the
technology is improved.
Besides relying on the technology to manufacture their products, the companies also
concentrates on ensuring that their corporate governance, management team, marketing
operations, sales techniques, advertising and the actual manufacturing processes are also
effective(Gawer, 2014). However, in this modern technological world, most businesses are
currently relying on the technology to conduct most of their business operations, including
making sales, procurement, marketing and advertising, production processes, management,
communication to name just but a few (Gaimon et al, 2017). Therefore, Toyota and GM being
global businesseshave always made use of the technology to perform these operations. In this
assignment, the research will focus on discussing various major business aspects that global
organizations like Toyota and GM have in common and the differences between the two in
relation to these aspects.
DISCUSSION
TOYOTA COMPANY
Globalization Strategies
As for Toyota Company, it is clear that over the last decades, the company has grown and
developed to become one of the best and largest automotive companies in the world. Apparently,
it beat General Motors back in 2008 after General Motors failure in the industry. Toyota operates
in a global scale operations whereby it has factories, assembling stores, selling markets and
manufacturing locations in most parts of the world (Robbins et al, 2013), e.g. Australia, Sri
Lanka, India, Canada, Indonesia, South Africa, Poland, France, Brazil, United Kingdom to name
just but a few. For this reason, the company has concentrated on ensuring the continuous of its

growth and development pattern by working on different strategies that can help it maintain its
position in the global market and its revenue levels among other things (Ichijo and Kohlbacher,
2007). The globalization strategies used by the company mostly originate from the Japanese
specialists that have access and experience in analyzing and evaluating global markets especially
in the automobile industry.
KAIZEN Strategy
Apparently, Toyota Motors uses the KAIZEN strategy whose principles focuses on product
quality improvement and development. The strategy is an integrative strategy which means that
it has many roles and functions to play in a business’s operations. Apparently, in this case, the
strategy focuses on ensuring that there is gradual improvement, management and continuous
business activities and procedures whose function and responsibility is to improve quality,
productivity and competitiveness of a product/service produced by the company (Wang et al,
2016). The strategy basically focuses on ensuring that the products are of high and best quality
by involving new technology in the manufacturing process. KAIZEN strategy in Toyota
Company has played a major role in ensuring increased research and development by use of
innovative technology with the aim of improving the company’s production methods and many
other operations like sales, marketing, assembling, advertising among others(Audenino, 2012).
With the strategy, the company is always able to maneuver in the global economic environment,
achieve global production and sales and attracted more customers than other automotive
companies simply because of the quality of the product it produces.
Manufacturing Technology Interface
To be the world’s most recognized and popular automotive company, Toyota focuses on
developing and improving the resources that it uses to manufacture its products. As an

automotive company, Toyota relies heavily on technology development and advancement
(Stacks and Ulmer, 2009). On the other hand, it is important to note that with the current world,
the technology advancement is becoming a drastic and frequent operation that causes immense
positive impacts to the world. This means that, the company’s resources become well equipped,
available and effective for their purpose especially in the lean production brought about by the
developed technology (Stacks and Ulmer, 2009). The company manufactures its products with
the use of technology which is now evolving (Gawer, 2014). Recently, Toyota has started
manufacturing electric cars which require much better and improved technology. The company
has also been concentrating on improving the ITS technology that was introduced in vehicles.
However much the company values technology development, it also values the modernization
and revolution that is being brought about by the automotive companies in the world. According
to Pil and Fujimoto, 2007, the company’s lean and reflective manufacturing processes have and
will always be based on the technology development levels.
Marketing Technology Interface
Toyota is an extremely large company that operates in almost all parts of the world. This means
that its marketing operations should certainly be well managed and controlled for Toyota to
maintain its leading position in the world. The company’s product brands are famous and
popular in most parts of the world. However, the competition from companies like GM has
forced Toyota to increase and improve its marketing techniques into methods that can be
effective and efficient for the company at large. In that case, the company has always utilized the
nature of technology development into achieving its marketing objectives. The company has
conducted its promotions, advertisements and marketing operations in the internet or rather
social media networks like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, goggle among others. The

company has pages on all of these sites and many others where it is able to communicate with
and to its customers when need be. Through these sites, the company is able all its markets,
employees, managers and customers around the world.
Organization Technology Interface
The organization technology is entirely related to the use of technology in ensuring effective and
efficient organizational structure in a business. Toyota Company uses an organizational structure
that is capable of affecting its technology innovation status (Loyd, 2016). The organizational
structure is focused on ensuring effective and efficient production of the products. The
company’s structure is effectively coordinated by the top management team headed by a number
of company presidents (Sosnovskikh, 2016). The roles and responsibilities allocated to each
employee are specifically allocated according to the employee’s skills, expertise, experience and
knowledge of the field (Robbins et al, 2013). Therefore, this means that in case of manufacturing
(which is done by the IT department experts, then the company and employees does their best to
ensure product production and quality standard achievement.
GENERAL MOTORS
Globalization Strategy
Being an international company, General Motors has to focus on its customer base, product
brand and name, business name and other aspects that contribute to improving a business’s value
in the global market. The company takes a different turn when it focuses on its operations
besides its customer base which is largest in US followed by China, Brazil, UK, Canada, Russia
and Germany. The company uses a strategy that is currently being used by most motor
companies (Twarowska and Kąkol, 2013). The company uses the strategy whose product
creation and manufacture focuses entirely on the global market and not a specific single market.

Traditionally, GM used to use the developing countries as dumping sites for second hand or
rather used cars. The company focused only on producing new cars for the already developed
countries therefore being attributed to consumer discrimination. However, the company decided
years back that it should concentrate on ensuring that it has a large market share and segment in
the global market by considering every type of customer (Goussak et al, 2012). Also, for the last
few years, the company has implemented some majorly important techniques to improve its
overall operations, especially those that relate to product quality, growth, development and
recognition, i.e. lead in production and technology, grow its product brand and line, grow its
markets world-wide and ensure efficient operations.
Manufacturing Technology Interface
General Motors Company designs, builds and sells cars, trucks, buses, car spare parts and other
automobile appliances. The company develops, manufactures and assembles the vehicles to sell
in its international market whose competition levels are extremely high and close. However, to
beat its competition, GM has focused on specialization of its 12 product brands which are:
Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Holden and Opel among others. The company has been
focusing on improving its production volumes and product quality by focusing fully on
improving its overall performance. The company’s through put performance can however, be
increased by improving and developing the product designs and operations relating to product
manufacture (T. Rosell et al, 2014).This is only possible with technology advancement and
modern technology implementation. Therefore, the company has always made use of its
manufacturing technology by managing and controlling activities and procedures in its three
major manufacturing related areas:

It develops an algorithm that estimates the throughput performance by use of modern
technology, pointing out system and operation bottlenecks and estimating buffer allocation
(Bayou and De Korvin, 2008).
Installation of real-time plant-floor-data-collecting systems that help support the algorithm
system
Created and developed a common process for identifying manufacturing opportunities and
implementing performance improvements.
Through these three activities in the manufacturing department, the company has been able to
increase its product volumes, increase product quality and increase revenues eventually (Chang
et al, 2008).
Marketing Technology Interface
Just like any other growing and expanding international business enterprise, General motors is
has also adopted the use of the improved technology to conduct its sales and marketing
operations. The company has always relied on technology development to perform its business
operations. However, because of the recent high rates of technology development the company’s
marketing and advertising operations are made easier as well as more effective (Akamatsu et al,
2014). The emergence of increased social media use by the customers to view products, conduct
product purchases, conduct product reviews and communicate to and with business organizations
has affected automotive companies and led them into adopting these strategies. General Motors
therefore uses the internet and other social networking sites to make its sales, conduct product
promotions, marketing operations, product advertisements, general information sharing and
updating to the consumers among other things. In addition to that, the company has also created

its own websites and pages in the internet and the social media platforms like in Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. The aim is either to penetrate different markets or expand its
market.
Organization Technology Interface
An organizational structure of a company can be adversely affected by a business’s technology
use. General Motors is headed by a board of directors, which is headed by the chairman and then
the CEO, the Presidents, Vice presidents, other managers and then the employees respectively
(Akamatsu et al, 2013). The structure is effective in such a way that the company’s business
operations are effective and efficient at the end of each day. The management team makes
decisions that relate to every business aspects including technology advancement and usage.
Therefore, ii is important to note that, the company’s management team has always focused on
choosing the best technology to be used in the business simply because its entire operations rely
completely on technology advancement and status. Additionally, the company has also relied on
technology to coordinate, supervise and allocate roles and responsibilities in the organization
which makes it more effective than anything else in the company.
COMPARISON
TOYOTA CMPANY GENERAL MOTORS COMPANY

Its global strategy focuses on the general
business improvement but mostly on the
increase and improvement of product quality
which determines the value of the product by
the customer hence determine market share
and segment
Focuses on improving its customer base
(market share and segment) by changing its
product focus to target every/any customer at
any and every level. i.e. improving its focus
on the developing countries’ markets as well
rather than the developed countries only
Main purpose is to use modern technology to
improve product quality.
Manufacturing operation aims at improving
its overall business operations, its production
volume and quality and production methods.
CONCLUSION
Toyota Motors and General Motors Companies are some of the world’s best and largest
automobile producers and sellers. The companies have contributed immensely to society and
economic prosperity by manufacturing and selling of automobile appliance and spare parts. The
companies have maintained their position in the automobile global market by focusing on the use
of the best, effective and efficient global strategies, manufacturing techniques and strategies,
marketing strategies and organizational structures. However, all of these business aspects in
these companies have been greatly affected and caused by technology which means that in case
the technology improves, these aspects improve as well. In that case, I can say that technology is
basically a major part of these companies’ operations and performance in the global market.

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