Don’t know if you guys caught this, but Hiroshi Okuda, chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation and President of the Japan Business Federation stated in yet another press conference that he believes that General Motors is in serious trouble:
Wow, pretty insightful stuff there, Captain Obvious. Now, I just have to say that I was always a diehard Toyota fan, but I’m really starting to take a strong dislike to the company. In addition to recent quality problems, now they’re behaving as arrogantly and spitefully as GM has over the past 30 years.

OK, so Toyota finds themselves poised to take over a field that was dominated by American manufacturers who became complacent. It seems Toyota have already taken a few steps down the same path. In addition to those arrogant remarks from Okuda, the cars they've shown at NAIAS show a surprising lack of style and ingenuity. They've worked hard to hide the fact their Hybrid vehicles don't perform as advertised and, in the case of the Prius, have some safety issues that have been swept under the rug. The Koreans, on the other hand, have taken the place of Japan in trying to reach the everyday worker and will continue to show growth with each new product they introduce. Where does that market share come from? From those who are attempting to dominate – sound familiar, Mr. Okuda?

Now it’s true, Toyota didn't ruin GM. GM executives – to a large extent – ruined GM. Kind of like Nero, they played golf and sipped martinis in Grosse Pointe while GM burned. That said, GM has eight vehicles which won long-term dependability awards. Toyota has four – and three of those are Lexus models. (Yes, I'm well aware that the Chevrolet Prizm is a rebadged Corolla – but the Corolla didn't make the top three compact car list.) And where, perchance, is the much-vaunted Camry? So to what extent does perception play into all of this, you have to wonder?

It’s true, GM’s upper management needs an enema and the company needs a complete revamping. But it’s also true that the domestic auto industry is severely hampered by an unfair playing field (i.e. Japanese factories still get tax breaks and subsidies for opening plants in the US – “Globalism” that American automakers don’t get to benefit from). The best thing, BEST THING, that could happen to GM and Ford is crisis. They are legacy companies with insular management. The only way to affect organizational transformation in situations like this is via crisis. It is painful and many will get the shaft, but in the end, GM and Ford will both re-emerge as significantly more innovative, customer oriented companies. So, even with possible bankruptcy...good will eventually come.

Meanwhile, as the American automakers reemerge as stronger, leaner companies, Toyota will also face stiff competition for its market share from the likes of Korean automakers – and perhaps eventually, Chinese.

 

I agree 110% on that. An arrogant attitude does nothing to benefit one's own future, especially in business.

BTW, what did you score on the paper there?

 

I read your paper when you first posted it. I could not find anything to disagree with so I didn't post.

I agree that you should send it to the Big 3 as well.

 

I didn't write the paper. It was the other guy.

 

Haha, 100%. (I'm not sure it really counts though, I'm the editor-in-chief so I assign the grades...)