Strategy and Operations Management in Automobile Manufacturing Firms



Comparison of Business Strategic and Operations Management among Volkswagen, Toyota, BMW, Ford and Porsche

Introduction

Operations Management is quite vast in its principles and functions and it has extensive application in manufacturing industry, especially in automobile industry. However, the application of operations management varies from industry to industry and organization to organization. Due to globalization, competition is getting fierce and compelling automobile firms to use latest technology in order to make their operations more efficient than those of their competitors and stakeholders and customers better than them. Success of automobile firms is now closely associated with time-based, precise functions which are efficient, flexible and instrumental in forming a profitable relationship with stakeholders, especially customers. Global advancements and competition are now dictating firms to remain on their toes for bringing about and implement innovation in operations and management on a continuous basis because this is the only way to remain in this fiercely competitive game (Mehok, 2012, Pp.28).

The example of e-businesses can really help firms to move their businesses forward because e-businesses have successfully made their operations highly efficient by utilizing the technology and minimized their operating costs. Large scale organizations in automobiles such as Toyota, Ford and BMW owe their business success to the effective management of their business operation and functions. Their business operations are focused on bringing about item management and efficiency regarding operations management. Toyota motor company is the best example of efficient operations management in automobile industry because this was the precise area on which Toyota managers focused their attention and made the most out of it in order to define their success. Toyota's lean management is emulated throughout the world by firms operating in different manufacturing industries (automobiles, bikes etc.) which were a part of efforts on the part of Toyota's management to maximize the functional and operational efficiency for designing and performing tasks in a timely manner without wasting a single amount of time and other resources. In this comparative analysis, we have analyzed the strategy, strategic management and operational management of Volkswagen, Toyota, BMW, Ford and Porsche that are one of the biggest companies operating in automobile industries throughout the world (Huang & Inman, 2010, Pp.3105).

Discussion

Toyota: Strategy, Strategic Management and Operations Management

Toyota is determined to keep its pace with rapid expansion of its growing business as well as technological changes. These demands exert a lot of pressure on the managers of Toyota for expanding the ambitions and increasing the rate of technological adoption and change. To meet its demand, Toyota possess the production capability of more than three million cars over the next two years, that makes Toyota perhaps the only automaker in industry that can expand its production capacity this much quickly, as per the industry experts. Ambitions at Toyota have expanded in the following areas:

1. Toyota wants to transform its luxury brand Lexus in Europe, speeding up this way, the major source of profits for European producers.

2. Toyota wants to Increase sales of Tundra, its pickup ...