Toyota Green Technology

Toyota Green Technology Competitive Advantage

Toyota's green investment in hybrid vehicles has positioned it as a leader in the automotive industry and creates a sustainable competitive advantage through value of its green image and reputation.   ...
... "As Toyota prepares to motor past Ford as the world's second-largest carmaker, it has become a textbook case on how a green reputation delivers a competitive edge. " ...
Via Business Week: Toyota Hybrid Advantage
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Issue 7, October 2001, and was republished in the September 5, 2002 issue of FT.com.
CREATING SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE:
THE TOYOTA PHILOSOPHY AND ITS EFFECTS
By M. Reza Vaghefi
The rise of the Japanese car manufacturers to positions of global dominance in the decades following
the second world war is well known. In recent years, despite the well-publicised troubles of some companies
such as Nissan, other Japanese car makers, most notably Toyota, have sustained and even increased their
global competitive advantage. As M. Reza Vaghefi and his colleagues explain, this competitive advantage is
based on a corporate philosophy known as the Toyota Production System. The system depends in part on a
human resources management policy that stimulates employee creativity and loyalty but also, importantly, on
a highly efficient network of suppliers and components manufacturers.
M. Reza Vaghefi is Professor of Strategic Management and International Business, and Louis Woods
is Professor of Economics and Geography, at the University of North Florida. Michael N. DaPrile is
Vice President of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Inc., Georgetown, Kentucky.
In October 2000, Fortune published its annual rating of the most admired car makers in the world.
Toyota was ranked first in the list, which included 14 manufacturers such as Ford and General Motors.
This article investigates the factors that have been instrumental in advancing the productivity of such
companies as Toyota, Honda and others in an... [continues]

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