Executive Decision Making At General Motors Question #1: How have GM’s strategy, structure and decision-making processes evolved over time? How well aligned were they in each of the three major eras? Strategy: Three major strategies included an ingenuous marketing policy, a commitment to innovation and internal diversification, With focus on market share, the divisions compete with each other. Top managers became more focused on cost than revenue ALFRED SLOAN’S GM: Reviving up (1920-1956) In 1908: Billy Durant Created the first automotive conglomerate and first vertically integrated company in the industry. Challenge: Poor management decision because internal competition and duplication were tolerated and often encouraged.
In addition, MB moved its manufacturing facilities closer to the market that is the USA. Most, importantly it became more customer oriented and used customer opinions for developing almost every part of the car 3. Q. Using Cooper’s cost, quality and functionality chart, discuss the factors on which MB competes with other automobile producers such as Jeep, Ford, and GM. Ans.
As young drivers are the ones most likely to have accidents, from time to time there are calls to raise the driving age. In the past few years lawmakers in the US states of Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois and Massachusetts have debated raising their driving age, although each attempt was denied (Huffington Post). The British government has also recently considered lifting the driving age in the UK from 17 to 18, although it seems unlikely to go ahead with this change (Huffington Post). The current driving age in Pennsylvania is 16. When a teen gets to that age all they think about is driving, but when they turn that age parents just begin to worry.
Delphi Corporation began as a business unit within General Motors (GM) that eventually broke off in 1999 and pursued its own strategic path to grow its business and become more profitable. Delphi became a large global supplier of automotive parts for many large companies like Ford, Volkswagen, Nissan, Daimler Chrysler and Hyundai and managed to remain profitable for 2 years after the separation from GM, but expenses accumulated and profits wore away resulting in each following year recording another loss for Delphi. In 1999 when Delphi became independent, non-GM revenue only totaled approximately $6.9 billion versus $22.3 billion from just GM, compared to $15.4 billion from non-GM and $10.5 billion from GM in 2007 (Exhibit 1, 2). In the year 2005 Delphi incurred a loss of $2.357 billion, and it was crucial for Delphi to make a move to try and implement a plan of reorganization (POR) within their corporation and keep it going to avoid having to liquidate assets. In October 2005 Delphi Corporation filed voluntary petitions to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In the early years, automobile industry was once dominated by a few makers like Ford and GM manufacturing wide variety of cars suitable to different consumer markets. But the pattern change happened with the oil shock of 1970s resulting in consumers, industrialists and government to rethink on gas guzzlers and trend shifting towards more fuel efficient vehicles. This led to the advent of more fuel efficient and family cars from Japan targeting lower to upper middle class families. The highly fuel efficient Japanese cars took US market by storm and 80s automobile market became much more oligopolistic than earlier years. Since mid-90s, the trend shifted towards greener vehicles and new research and innovative vehicles became the mantra of the industry.
The Company was a success from the beginning. The Ford Motor Company was a threat for the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufactures; which now threatened to put his company out of business, because Ford was not a licensed manufacture. He had been denied a license by this group, which was aimed at protecting its members, profits what was becoming a fast growing industry. Their basis of their power was control of a patent granted in 1895 to George Baldwin Seldon a patent attorney from Rochchester, New York. The Associations claimed that their patent applied to all gasoline powered engines.
Ford created the automobile industry, which employed thousands of workers and inspired new industries as well (Heritage, 2010).The new industries included but were not limited to: gas stations, mechanics, fast food restaurants drive-ins (pig stands) and motels (A&E, 2006). Cars basically changed the way people lived, how they spend their leisure time and where they worked at (Roak et al., 2011). With cars people could travel further to work, vacation or to other cities. Ford not only inspired new automobiles and jobs but he also attracted competition. Walter Percy Chrysler was one of the last independent car manufacturers to enter the automobile industry; he established the Chrysler Corporation in 1924 (Peterson, 2013).By the end of the 1920s decade there were three major leading automobile industries: Ford, General Motors, and
Company Objectives The company objectives are as follows, - To maintain and improve market share for both core business and IC business - to continue producing and improving vehicles with enjoying performance while preserving the environment Company Background BMW Canada Inc. was formed in 1986. It encompasses a total of 39 automobile retail centers, 18 motorcycle retailers and 22 MINI retailers. BMW Individual Collection (IC) program launched in 2002. IC combined exclusive paint, upholstery and trim options to provide customized solutions for BMW cars. The launch was success as evidenced by high consumer interest, strong retailer participation and profitability.
In the following analysis we try to present the advantages and disadvantages of eventual acquisition of Autodistribution. The core activity of Butler Capital is investing in different businesses. They have successfully completed two fundraising funds, reaching IRR of 32.8% on the first one. The opportunity of buying Autodistribution is considered as a great addition to the existing business portfolio. The business of Autodistribution consists of trading with automotive spare parts; reaching FF 7.7 billion (33% market share of the independent wholesale segment and 10% market share of the total market in France).
Marketing - Case Study AUDI A3 Sportback Audi is a brand of the Volswagen group which is the largest car manufacturer in EU. The Audi A3 is a real pillar of the Audi Brand. Today Audi is about to launch the Audi A3 Sportback. What strategy should we set up in order to launch this new car ? SWOT These analyze of the internal and external diagnostic of our brand and market aims at adapting the strategy regarding those two contexts.