Report on Managing Operations, Logistics, and Supply Chain at Toyota

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Toyota's operations management, logistics, and supply chain strategies. It begins with an introduction to these concepts and their importance, followed by a detailed overview of Toyota's business. The report examines the major challenges Toyota faces in its operations, supply chain, and logistics, including competing practices, sustainability, globalization, safety, and cost reduction. It also explores how Toyota manages quality using various tools and techniques, such as cause-and-effect diagrams and control charts. Furthermore, the report highlights the significance of managing people within the operations and supply chain, emphasizing the importance of relationships with employees, suppliers, and customers. Overall, the report offers valuable insights into how Toyota effectively manages its operations to maintain its market leadership and achieve its business goals.

Managing operations

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
To operations management, logistic and supply chain...............................................................1
To the company...........................................................................................................................1
Managing quality........................................................................................................................4
Managing people in operation and supply chain.........................................................................5
Triple bottom line........................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
To operations management, logistic and supply chain.
To work efficiently and effectively it is important for any industry or company to
manage the people under their work whether they are workers, management or the supplier of
the company. Without the management of the work which they are doing it will be
impossible for them to achieve the specified goal or to sustain in market. There are many
people who are associated with a company and if the company is of the automotive industry
then their suppliers are the one without whom they will not be able to work (Aitken, Deakins
and Towill, 2016). Operations management is that function of management which help them
to plan, organise, direct, staff and control all the working of the management or that of
operations. The operation of the company include its production, manufacturing, financing
and marketing of the products which are produced and sold to the customers. So it is utmost
important to manage all these operations just to coordinate and for the smooth functioning of
the company. Logistic is that part of the company which help them to identify how would be
cost saved and the process of flow of goods between their production to their consumption.
This is basically the handling of the physical goods like food, material and equipments and
their flow. Logistic is also the part of supply chain which help them to plan, control and
implement the store of goods, services and other equipments of firm. While on the other hand
supply chain is the process of flow of goods and service through various channels of
distribution and then reaching to the end user of that particular good and service (Giannakis
and Papadopoulos, 2016). This also involve to manage, control and distribute all the people
who are involved in the process of supplier.
To the company.
All these above mentioned process and activities are an important part of the
automotive company as it involve the manufacturing and production of the vehicle for the
transportation purpose. And this is very important to manage and control cost of the
production and manufacturing of the automotive so that they are best sold in market and
profit can be earned (Jayamaha and Harvie, 2014). Toyota motor corporation is the Japanese
multinational automotive manufacturer company whose headquarter is at Toyota, Aichi,
Japan. Toyota was the 5th largest automotive manufacturing company in terms of revenue
generation in the year 2015 and is the 1st company to produce 10 million vehicles per year
since 2012. It is not only producing all types of vehicles and selling to its customer but also
giving services to people like that of financing, banking and leasing out of vehicles. The
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company was founded in the year 1937 by its founder Kiichiro Toyoda. Toyota is the worlds
the biggest company for producing hybrid electric vehicles and thus encouraging the mass in
adaptation of these hybrid electric vehicles. These vehicles are very good for economy as is
the most fuel efficient vehicles which help the kinetic energy of the vehicle to convert into
electric energy to charge the battery. Toyota is the automotive company which is selling and
having its factory all around the world this is public sector organisation which is owned by
Toyota Industries. Toyota is producing many types of auto motives like luxury vehicles,
commercial vehicles like lorry and buses and engines as well (Tregear, 2015). Almost
364000+ employees are working in Toyota in the present year of 2017 worldwide.
There are many problems which are faced by the operational, logistic and supply
chain. All the problem if not resolved then can emerge to a big issue and then will lead to
lack of profits to the company (Major Issues Facing Supply Chain Managers. 2017). The
problems or issues which are faced by operational, logistic and supply chain management are
as follows.
Operational:
Competing practices- there are different types of department in Toyota and all these are very
important so that they are managed and work together to achieve the target. There always
have a competitive sprite in those departments of company and to get themselves better than
the others. So it is the duty and task of the operational manager to ensure that all employees
within the company are using the same method and policies and also that the communication
between them are good. Without the use of proper communication skill or channels they will
not be able to maintain several functions of the company (Major Issues Facing Supply Chain
Managers. 2017). And to overcome this proper operational manager should see that the
communication between them are good and correct so that they can manage all the
employees.
Sustainability- for company like Toyota its customer will be the top most priority always and
they want that these customers remain loyal to company. This sustainability will be there if
Toyota is providing the best quality of product to customer as today every one want a fuel
efficient vehicles. Encouraging transparency between the customer and company by
developing all business policy will always help the company in sustainability practices
(Stanwick and Stanwick, 2017). This problem of operational management can be overcome
by maintaining the quality of products and service which are been provided by Toyota to its
customer and thus ensuring satisfaction of customer which will be leading to sustainability.
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Supply chain:
Globalisation- as Toyota is a global company which is producing and manufacturing its
product all over the world so this is also one of the major problem which is faced by Toyota
in its supply chain management. If the company is going and operating on global level than
this is the biggest opportunity for that firm but at the same time this will be brining the
problems regarded to the supply of all raw materials and that of finished products. This
problem could be overcome by use of proper data management and integration of them
(Vanpoucke and Muylle, 2017). If Toyota is connected with all its suppliers and dealers in
good manner then they can resolve the problem of globalisation.
Safety and quality products- this is also one of the biggest problem whether the company is
on global level or on local level. For Toyota it is very much important to maintain the quality
and safety of the product which it is producing and selling. There is very high pressure on
Toyota to produce quality of vehicles which will be ensuring safety of customers and this is
an increasing challenges for the company (Vanpoucke and Muylle, 2017). This issue of
supply chain can also be overcome just by selection of the right raw material and ensuring
that the international standards of vehicles is maintained by Toyota.
Logistic:
Lowering cost- Toyota need to manufacture that type of vehicles which is not only fuel
efficient for its customers but also cost efficient for company as well. Toyota always need to
develop its technology with the help of which they can produce best selling vehicles. Logistic
of Toyota is main element of total cost for any of product sourcing and this include all types
of cost not only the one which is concern to manufacturing of products (Simatupang and
Sridharan, 2016). The cost which they incur while transportation, reliability of material and
that of management of inventory need to be regulated and lower down. This problem could
be easily overcome with the use of better technology in manufacturing of products and
delivering the best quality of service.
Financial challenges- this problem can be raised at any time for the company and then this
will be affecting all over the company. In the year 2008 Toyota suffered a heavy loss of
decrease in sale of its products which was caused by global financial crises (Major Issues
Facing Supply Chain Managers. 2017). Increasing cost and price of petrol will also be
affecting the price of vehicles so Toyota is trying to produce most fuel efficient car so that
they can overcome this financial challenge.
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Managing quality.
Toyota is regarded to as the market leader in the terms of production and
manufacturing of automotive in the world. And having some principles which is based on the
operations of Toyota and its manufacturing. Operations of Toyota is mainly composed of the
manufacturing and production of vehicles and then their selling and distribution. All these
things from conversion of raw materials, distributing the vehicles in showroom and till selling
them to the end use customer (Holland and Yates, 2016). This is the actual process which the
company is following and this process need to very smooth so that the target of the company
which is of profit maximisation should be achieved. It need to achieve its long term goal of
being the top most company in the world market of automotive and to give the best quality
goods and service to the customer. Satisfying the customer is the basic principle and
important aim of the company which can be achieved only when Toyota is providing the best
quality of services. While producing the vehicles it is also important to lower down the cost if
the cost of company is low then they can save the money and invest that part of money to
their research and development. To manage and retain the quality of product Toyota need to
follow seven basic tools and techniques of quality which will be helping the company to
follow the quality standard in all over the world (Jabbour and Renwick,2017). The seven
tools of management are used to maintain the quality of the product which are produced in
Toyota and then to ensure the service quality as well. The tools of quality management are:
Cause and effect- this need to identify many possible cause and effect for the specified
problem and then help in sorting out the idea into useful categories.
Check sheet- to collect and then analyse data structured form which is prepared is known as
check sheet and this is a generic tool which is top be used for variety of purpose.
Control chart- these are the graphs which are used to study how will be the process is
changing over time.
Histogram- this is a type of graph which shows frequency distribution and how many time
on that distribution that particular data is occurring.
Pareto Chart- it will show that factors which are more important on the bar graph.
Scatter diagram- it put the value of two numerical data on graph on each of the one axis and
then look for the relationship between them both.
Stratification- in this to see the pattern of data all gathered data are separated from variety of
sources. This replace flowchart and run chart with stratification.
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Managing people in operation and supply chain.
It is not only important to manage the quality of product which Toyota is doing in a
very efficient manner. For Toyota it is very important to manage and control all the people
who are associated with company and especially in the supply chain and in operations (Reid,
Ismail and Sharifi, 2016). The people who are associated with Toyota who are responsible for
whether manufacturing or distribution are employees, management, owners, suppliers,
showroom owners and their employees, dealer, financier and customer as well. All these play
an important role in the sale and profit maximisation of Toyota so it is required by the
company to maintain good relationship with all of them. This management of people in the
supply chain and operation is majorly done by operational manager who are the responsible
person in this task. Operational management is the process of conversion of raw material
which are obtained form various sources and then convert them into finished goods which are
easy to sold and then earn profits. So in Toyota to maintain this operational management and
the people who are involved in it is very important so that the quality of product is
maintained, cost is cut down and thus creating a higher amount of profits for company
(Oldenkamp, van Zelm and Huijbregts, 2016). Supply chain of Toyota also need to be well
maintained so that the right type of product is made available at right time and that too to the
right person. This is very important if Toyota need to earn more and more amount of profits
and then sustain the loyal customer of company. It also needs to overcome all issues which
are there in operational, logistic and supply chain of Toyota. There are many problems which
are related with the management of the people of organisation and that of outside as to
understand the people and then manage them is very tough task. The people in the supply
chain give the company better way to direct and organise the given resources with Toyota.
They maintain the demand and supply of the product by providing right product to right type
of person who is in the urgent need of the product. As Toyota is operating all over the world
so the supply chain of the company is very large and this is impossible to maintain them
without use of technology. The advancement in technology will be helping the company in
order to maintain the people (Prajogo, Oke and Olhager, 2016). They can have a control on
all these people with the help of technology which will be very easy as they can communicate
with the supplier or with that of the showroom owner and then make vehicles available
according to that.
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Triple bottom line.
Sustainability is the part of Toyota which help company to remain in market and thus
earning higher amount of profits. In practice of business and to grow in market it will be
require by Toyota to follow three dimensions of sustainability in business practice which are
social, economical and environmental. As Toyota is always known for its sustainability in car
and other vehicles market since its establishment in 1937 (The Three Pillars of Corporate
Sustainability, 2017). This is because Toyota is earning good amount of profit, fulfilling its
corporate social responsibilities and then taking environment to seriously in its production
that always want to produce fuel efficient cars.
Environmental- at the present scenario this is most important part and element of
sustainability business practice. As growing pollution and concern of governments all around
the world about environment is increasing from past decade. Toyota is producing the vehicles
which are meant to reduce carbon footprints, water usage and packaging waste this will be
giving a positive impact to planet (Sindi and Roe, 2017). Toyota is the leading producer of
hybrid electronic engines which is converting its kinetic energy to electronic energy so that it
can charge its battery.
Social- in this it need to produce the vehicles which are safe and secure for the drivers and
the passengers who are using the car or vehicles. They also need to maintain its relationship
with all people who are associated with Toyota and also to motivate the employee so that
they can retain them into company.
Economical- all companies which are established in society are there to maximise the
amount of profits and to cut down its cost (The Three Pillars of Corporate Sustainability,
2017). This is the economical factor which is affecting the business and its sustainability in
the market. It is not only the profit which comes under this but compliance, proper
governance and risk management are also some parts of economical pillar.
Recommendation:
 It is recommended that Toyota should be using the three dimensions of sustainability
to remain available in market.
 It is very important to manage the risk, and the people in operational management,
supply chain and logistic in business.
 It is crucial to ensure the quality of service and that of product so that it is safe and
secure for its customers.
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CONCLUSION
In the above essay it has been concluded that Toyota the world leader in revenue
generation in the vehicles market is growing at a very fast speed. They are managing all the
people in operations and supply chain of the company so that they can easily gain higher
profits. They are manufacturing the fuel efficient car which are very popular in market and
they are generating higher amount of profits with the help of this. All the problems which are
faced by Toyota like that of globalisation need to be solved so that they can easily do the
supply of the vehicles.
REFERENCES
Books and journals:
Aitken, J., Deakins, E. and Towill, D., 2016. A comparative study of manufacturing and
service sector supply chain integration via the uncertainty circle model. The
International Journal of Logistics Management. 27(1). pp.188-205.
Giannakis, M. and Papadopoulos, T., 2016. Supply chain sustainability: A risk
management approach. International Journal of Production Economics. 171. pp.455-
470.
Holland, S. P., and Yates, A .J., 2016. Damages and expected deaths due to excess NO x
emissions from 2009 to 2015 Volkswagen diesel vehicles. Environmental science &
technology. 50(3). pp.1111-1117.
Jabbour, C. J .C., and Renwick, D. W. S., 2017. An analysis of the literature on
humanitarian logistics and supply chain management: paving the way for future
studies. Annals of Operations Research, pp.1-19.
Jayamaha, N. P., and Harvie, W., 2014. Testing a theoretical model underlying the
‘Toyota Way’–an empirical study involving a large global sample of Toyota facilities.
International Journal of Production Research. 52(14). pp.4332-4350.
Oldenkamp, R., van Zelm, R. and Huijbregts, M. A., 2016. Valuing the human health
damage caused by the fraud of Volkswagen. Environmental Pollution. 212. pp.121-
127.
Prajogo, D., Oke, A. and Olhager, J., 2016. Supply chain processes: Linking supply
logistics integration, supply performance, lean processes and competitive
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performance. International Journal of Operations & Production Management. 36(2).
pp.220-238.
Reid, I., Ismail, H. and Sharifi, H., 2016. A Framework for Operational Agility: How
SMEs Are Evaluating Their Supply Chain Integration. In Managing in a VUCA
World (pp. 151-168). Springer International Publishing.
Simatupang, T. M. and Sridharan, R., 2016. A critical analysis of supply chain issues in
construction heavy equipment. International Journal of Construction Management.
16(4). pp.326-338.
Sindi, S. and Roe, M., 2017. The Evolution of Supply Chains and Logistics. In Strategic
Supply Chain Management (pp. 7-25). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Stanwick, P. and Stanwick, S., 2017. Volkswagen Emissions Scandal: The Perils of
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Research. 6(1). p.18.
Tregear, R., 2015. Business process standardization. In Handbook on Business Process
Management 2 (pp. 421-441). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
Vanpoucke, E., and Muylle, S., 2017. Leveraging the impact of supply chain integration
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Online:
Major Issues Facing Supply Chain Managers. 2017 [Online] Accessed through:
<https://blog.procurify.com/2015/06/10/4-major-issues-facing-your-supply-chain-
manager/>
The Three Pillars of Corporate Sustainability, 2017 [Online] Accessed through:
<https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/100515/three-pillars-corporate-
sustainability.asp>
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