Strategic plan for one of the companies listed on Forbes International Top Ten list - Essay Example

In today’s modern era, every company strives to dominate its market. In order to gain any market segment, a company must have a business strategic plan implemented to achieve its goals. Each year Forbes.com comes with a list of top corporations that are excelling in their market. One of the firms that have made a dramatic impact in its industry is Toyota. Toyota is one of the few companies that has the honor to claim itself as “not only the best automaker in the world, but also maybe the best corporation”.

This paper will discuss the strategic management of Toyota and its quest to become the market leader in its industry. One of the most unique strategic planning that Toyota has implemented is to employee top management positions from Japan. Although this move might not work for every corporation, Toyota has the reputation to preserve its brand reputation. From design to corporate decisions, all operations take place in Tokyo[2]. The reason for this is clearly explained by John Paul MacDuffee, a professor at local university as he states, “This is about a greater maturity about globalizing and transferring knowledge that Toyota certainly has at this point.”[2]. In addition, these executives decided to ask their suppliers to reduce their cost by 30%.

Management understood that every little step taken by them will influence the company in the long-run. By building a solid environment of knowledge and design, Toyota is able to utilize mass production methods[1]. How is this achieved? Well, the company is a firm believer in the Just-in-time “lean production.” Toyota’s lean manufacturing system is a critical for its strategic planning by enhancing the flow of work [1]. In addition, it focuses to reduce the organization’s waste, which dramatically increases customer value.

Moreover, it levels of production level which eliminates unevenness in its manufacturing system. Just-in-time improves organization's return on investment, quality, and efficiency[1]. Undoubtedly, much of the success that Toyota has enjoyed is due to this model that is collaborated and implemented through planning and executive models. The current strategic planning for Toyota is to introduce a new line of hybrid cars. As humanity progresses to the 21st century, society has becoming more environmental friendly.

Hence, Toyota saw this as an opportunity to expand its line of cars. Hence, it decided to invest heavily in research and development in order to build hybrid-electric vehicles [3]. Toyota’s ability to fund in development was critical as it poured millions of dollars without hurting its capital budget. After years of researching, Toyota decided to aggressively showcase its new hybrid Camry and Highlander, two cars that are known for quality and durability [3]. However, it was met by a tough rival as Ford introduced its newest S.U.V at the same time where Toyota showcased its news Prius.

While other company’s struggled to design hybrid cars that produced revenue, Toyota was already enjoying decent profits. Interestingly enough, the company never attempts to make any bold of false promises as other companies. Toyota executives acknowledged the fact that gas prices will continue to rise as oil becomes scarce. Furthermore, it was clear that creating an automobile that was “environmental friendly” is clearly going to be the future of the industry[3]. Hence, by carefully forecasting the