Strategic plan for one of the companies listed on Forbes International Essay

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 â€Å"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 expl ained by John Paul MacDuffee, a professor at local university as he states, â€Å"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 â€Å"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 companyà ¢â‚¬â„¢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 â€Å"environmental friendly† is clearly going to be the future of the industry[3]. Hence, by carefully forecasting the

Reflection Paper on Romance on a Global Stage, by Nicole Constable Essay

Reflection Paper on Romance on a Global Stage, by Nicole Constable - Essay Example There are more than 350 matrimonial and dating websites on the internet that match the profiles of men and women with people from all over the globe and romantic union clearly demonstrates the amalgamation of the global community. Nicole Constable has discussed this aspect of the society in her unique study and compiled it in her book titled â€Å"Romance on a global stage: Pen pals, virtual ethnography and mail-order marriage’, where the substance of her prose focuses on real individuals in a romantic or matrimonial alliance with people in a different country and culture. (Constable, 2003, p. 198-208) The basic premise of the relationship centers on men from the west and eastern women; primarily Filipina or Chinese women. Constables work is not only based on theoretical evidences but also anecdotal that gives the readers a general insight into the matter. Marriage is one the most universal concepts and as mentioned earlier, as the internet is becoming more and more synonymou s with the world’s population, online relationships and mail-order marriages have become extremely common and as a result the differences between the value system between people belonging to various cultural backgrounds have become even more pronounced; however, the values have undergone a series of change in recent, as a result the global community has become more uniform. ... Online dating and mail-order marriage is a long-distance relationship, and couples are able to stay in touch only through the internet, telephone or the conventional method of writing letters to each other. (Piper & Roces, 2003) Sometimes, individuals also pay visits to their significant others in their home country until they finally immigrate. The cost involved is very high and often the immigration procedure takes a really long while due to rampant bureaucracy and red-tapism that further prolongs the waiting period for the husbands and their wives. During this time there are a number of issues that the couples face and must resolve in order to ensure a prosperous future together. The Asian women, who have applied for an American visa, have to endure the biting remarks of their peers that their husbands might have found someone else. Often officials working at the immigration office or INS are governed by their prejudices and biases towards various cultures and races and in order t o vent out their anger, they delay the procedure and make the wait longer for couples. In case of Freddie, who had a Filipina wife was subjected to the anger and frustration brought about by the immigration procedure due to the fact that the immigration had a personal grudge against people from the Philippines and thought they did not deserve to be allowed in the country. Their grudges and anger towards the race is a deep-seated one and has it origin in the country’s history whereby, Philippines chose independence instead of becoming a pert of the United States. However, the current economic situation of the country cause the people to move to America in pursuit of greener pasture but before that they have to face the immigration