Toyota's Operations in Australia: Technology, Competition & Strategy

This report explores Toyota's technological advancements within the Australian market, detailing its strategic positioning amidst competitors and suppliers. It provides a company background, highlighting Toyota's global leadership in hybrid electric sales and its adoption of technology in Australia. The competitive landscape includes rivals like Ford Ranger and Mazda 3, who are also investing in intelligent vehicle technology. The report discusses the impact of Toyota's decision to cease manufacturing in Australia on its suppliers and internal operations, leading to workforce reduction. A SWOT analysis identifies strengths such as R&D focus and brand image, weaknesses including supplier dependence and negative publicity from recalls, opportunities in green vehicle technology and growing environmental concerns, and threats from competitors and fluctuating exchange rates. The report concludes that continuous technological enhancement is essential for Toyota to maintain its market position in Australia.

RUNNING HEAD: Technological Advancements
Technological Advancements

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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Company Background.....................................................................................................................2
Competitors......................................................................................................................................2
Suppliers..........................................................................................................................................3
Internal and External Matters..........................................................................................................3
SWOT Analysis...............................................................................................................................3
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................5
References........................................................................................................................................6

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Introduction
Technology can be defined as the processes, principles, and nomenclatures of the conspicuous
arts, specifically those in which the application of science is involved, and are considered to be
useful as it promotes the benefit of the society. With the passage of time, a number of
advancements have taken place in the field of technology. Australia is known for the adoption of
new technologies at a faster rate as compared to the other countries of the world. This report is
based on the company Toyota and provides details on its competitors, suppliers and internal and
external matters along with an analysis of its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
Company Background
Toyota Motor Corporation or Toyota is the multinational automotive manufacturer having its
headquarters situated in Aichi, Japan. The company is the world’s market leader in terms of
hybrid electric sales and is considered among one of the largest companies to encourage the
adoption of hybrid vehicles in different parts of the globe.
Toyota is known for the production and management of motorsport along with effective
advertising and handling of business operations in Australia. Over a period of time, it has been
observed that Australia has many Toyota cars. The increased sales of Toyota cars in Australia
are the result of the adoption of updated technology by the company (Ruttimann & Stöckli,
2016).
Competitors
In Australia, Toyota has been able to lead the market by marking its name among the top selling
cars of the year 2017. Toyota Hilux was on the top of the list. However, the competitor cars
include, Ford Ranger, Mazda 3, Hyundai i30, Mazda CX- 5, Hyundai Tucson, Holden
Commodore, and Mitsubishi Triton. The tastes of the Australian customers in cars have changed
a lot over the past few decades. Strong competition is faced by Toyota due to exceptional power,
performance and technology of these competitors (Chiarini & Vagnoni, 2015).
The competitors are also not behind in terms of development of effective technology. They are
also developing intelligent vehicles through semiconductors and control systems by way of

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expanding their research into electrical technology. With the help of intelligent systems, the cars
are becoming smarter and are expected to provide comfort and optimal driving environment to
the customers (Hill, 2017).
Suppliers
The suppliers play an important role in the outstanding performance of Toyota cars in Australia.
The suppliers selected by Toyota Australia are considered to be amongst the highly advanced
and skilled manufacturers of the country. The parts are being obtained by Toyota Australia from
the local suppliers instead of importing them from other countries. The company is involved in
the Supplier Developmental activities and is also assisted by Automotive Supply Chain
Development Program of the Federal Government. However, Toyota has now officially ended
the manufacturing of vehicles in Australia. This has created a significant impact on the suppliers
in Australia (Aoki & Wilhelm, 2017).
Internal and External Matters
Since the business operations of the company are wider, there are a number of internal and
external matters. The closing of the manufacturing operations of Toyota in Australia affected the
internal working of the company. The cessation and consolidation led to the reduction of the
number of employees in the company from 3,900 to 1,300 (Toyota, 2017). The reduction led to
the unemployment of the individuals and caused their suffering. The workers who suffered from
the loss of job were the long serving workers which were now compelled to face the job market
which has been changed dramatically since they joined Toyota.
The external matter of the company includes the fact that Australian- made cars are not being
purchased by the people. The decision was taken by the Federal Government for providing a
push to the auto industry offshore. The failure of the government subsidies led to the closing of
manufacturing operations by various companies. The closing of the operations in Australia was
also the result of changing tastes of the customers and their reduced purchase of car made in
Australia (ABC News, 2017).

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SWOT Analysis
S.
No
.
Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
1. Strong focus on R &D and
rapid innovation capabilities
Dependence on
Suppliers
Green Vehicle
Technology
Number of
Competitors
2. Strong brand image Negative Publicity Growing Concerns
for Environmental
Pollution
High- Priced
Raw Materials
3. Strong Supply Chain Not Grabbing
Markets
Growing interest
in advanced
vehicles
Fluctuations in
Exchange Rates
Strengths- Toyota Australia is known for its strong focus on the R & D (research and
development) which has assisted it in producing innovative vehicles for fulfilling the needs of
Australian customers. The company also makes the use of leading edge and forward looking
technology with the help of which it is able to surpass the technologies of the rivals. In Australia,
Toyota has the image of most recognizable automotive brand of the world which plays a great
role in its sales and profitability. The supply chain of Toyota Australia enable resilience and acts
as a strength by minimizing market based risk (Stellios & Richman, 2016).
Weaknesses- Since Toyota has stopped its manufacturing operations in Australia, the
dependence on the suppliers have increased to a great extent. Sometimes, this also creates an
impact on the sales by causing unnecessary delays. The large vehicle recalls have resulted in
creating a negative publicity for Toyota Australia. The higher recall rates of Toyota are further
expected to bring negative publicity. Another weakness of Toyota comprise of the fact that it has
successfully developed the green vehicle technology but has not yet found a market for its
implementation (Barron, Pereda & Stacey, 2017).
Opportunities- the green vehicle technology appears to be a great opportunity for Toyota. This
technology is gaining immense technology across the word. The focus of Toyota in this area will
allow it to gain much revenue from this innovation. Furthermore, it will also assist in reducing
the pollution levels of Australia. Moreover, the growing concerns for the environmental pollution

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are also a good opportunity. The environmental degradation has become the concern of people in
Australia. Toyota should popularize the company as environmental friendly in Australia. The
innovative technologies are required to be used by Toyota in Australia in order to take the
advantage of these opportunities. Also, the preference of the customers has also changed over a
period of time. Customers now prefer competitive, innovative and fuel efficient cars. In other
words, they are showing growing interest in technologically advanced vehicles (Kurdve,
Zackrisson, Wiktorsson & Harlin, 2014).
Threats- the competitors create a strong threat for Toyota in Australia. The huge names such as
Hyundai, Ford, Mitsubishi, etc. make it difficult for Toyota to maintain its position in the market.
Moreover, the cost of various inputs and raw materials are increasing due to inflation. This, in
turn, is resulting in the increase in the cost of the end product. Furthermore, Toyota is
continuously suffering from the threat of exchange rates. Japan receives revenues from Australia
in Yen, the profits are lowered as compared to other currencies (Imai, 2017).
Conclusion
Therefore, it can be concluded that technology plays a key role in the success of any organization
in the marketplace. This report focused on the company Toyota and provided details on its
competitors, suppliers and internal and external matters along with an analysis of its strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The report further provided that it is the technology
adopted by the company which assisted Toyota in achieving new heights in the Australian
market. The company can maintain its position only by way of continuous enhancement of this
capability.

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References
ABC News. (2017). Toyota workers out of jobs as car manufacturer closes Altona plant.
Retrieved September 3, 2018 from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-03/toyota-car-
production-ends-altona-after-50-years-manufacturing/9007624
Aoki, K., & Wilhelm, M. (2017). The Role of Ambidexterity in Managing Buyer–Supplier
Relationships: The Toyota Case. Organization Science, 28(6), 1080-1097.
Barron, A., Pereda, A., & Stacey, S. (2017). Exploring the performance of government affairs
subsidiaries: A study of organisation design and the social capital of European
government affairs managers at Toyota Motor Europe and Hyundai Motor Company in
Brussels. Journal of World Business, 52(2), 184-196.
Chiarini, A., & Vagnoni, E. (2015). World-class manufacturing by Fiat. Comparison with Toyota
production system from a strategic management, management accounting, operations
management and performance measurement dimension. International Journal of
Production Research, 53(2), 590-606.
Hill, T. (2017). Manufacturing strategy: the strategic management of the manufacturing
function. Macmillan International Higher Education.
Imai, N. (2017). Toyota Production System for Business Process Management. Holistic Business
Process Management: Theory And Pratice, 14, 57.
Kurdve, M., Zackrisson, M., Wiktorsson, M., & Harlin, U. (2014). Lean and green integration
into production system models–experiences from Swedish industry. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 85, 180-190.
Ruttimann, B. G., & Stöckli, M. T. (2016). Going beyond triviality: The Toyota production
system—lean manufacturing beyond Muda and Kaizen. Journal of Service Science and
Management, 9(02), 140.
Stellios, K., & Richman, A. (2016). Competition law: Extending the reach of Australia's cartel
laws. Governance Directions, 68(8), 494.

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Toyota. (2017). TOYOTA AUSTRALIA CLOSES MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS. Retrieved
September 3, 2018 from https://www.toyota.com.au/main/news/toyota-australia-closes-
manufacturing-operations