Manufacturing

Can the Toyota Way Be Transplanted?

Thu, 13 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT

In the second of a two-part interview, a longtime Toyota executive explains the world's best selling car manufacturer's methodology -- and how it creates loyalty. He also discusses matters such as why all the new cars look alike and why the market for luxury cars is expanding.

What Price Car Customer Loyalty?

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT

There isn't much Bryan Bergsteinsson doesn't know about cars -- building them, selling them, and driving them. In an in-depth Q&A, this one-time Toyota executive draws on that knowledge to suggest that the automotive industry is being pushed too far too fast on environmental issues. More significantly for executives across industries, he questions the value of customer satisfaction ratings and explains why engaged customers are more valuable than merely satisfied ones.

Anticipating Failure -- Then Adapting to Succeed

Thu, 14 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

This company president's business was growing at a torrid pace -- so much so that it almost crashed and burned. So he and his team decided to slow that growth and focus on sustainability. Executives across a range of industries can learn from his experience.

Innovation the Right Way

Thu, 10 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Many companies, including those in the Fortune 500, are investing heavily in innovation but getting frustrated with their returns. They may want to stop and take notice of this small manufacturing company that has proven to be wildly successful in innovation. You may not have heard of Fabcon, but this business' approach is sure to influence yours.

Investing in Employees' Development

Thu, 10 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT

A Cargill manager's employees rate him exceptionally high on a crucial aspect of great management: developing his team. His leadership practices, which he says he learned as a teen, offer lessons to managers across all industries, according to the authors of the New York Times bestseller 12: The Elements of Great Managing.

Great Leadership Under Fire

Thu, 08 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Following a drought and a disastrous harvest, farmer cooperative Auglaize Provico saw profits plummet. The losses were devastating and possibly fatal. But under the leadership of a persistent and visionary CEO, Larry Hammond, the co-op turned calamity into victory, and profits rebounded substantially. In fact, Hammond's small co-op, a remnant of 19th-century farming, achieved things that global mega-companies and trillion-dollar governments fail to do all the time. Here's how.

Why Employees Need the Right Equipment

Thu, 08 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT

A manager at Owens Corning's Rio Claro, Brazil, facility knows that equipping his employees with what they need leads to many benefits, not the least of which is worker safety, comfort, and productivity. But it also instills team spirit. In fact, the Rio Claro facility is emblematic of one of the key elements revealed in the recently published New York Times bestseller, 12: The Elements of Great Managing.

The Four Drivers of Innovation

Thu, 11 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Senior executives and management experts argue that innovation is today's most important driver of business success, not to mention global economics. That's why a group of company leaders gathered recently to discuss innovation, leadership, and the new economy of creativity, knowledge, and invention. They also explored how to translate these amorphous concepts into real business dollars. Their insights, distilled to the four drivers of innovation, are relevant to executives from businesses large and small, global and local.

An International Paper Mill Saves Itself

Thu, 14 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

When the nearly 900 workers at a Texarkana mill faced a weakening market and, worse, multiple rounds of downsizing, they could've given up and waited to lose their jobs. But instead of choosing to be victims of the global economy, they consciously -- and conscientiously -- set about saving their mill, and themselves. Here is their success story.

Engineering a Friendly Workplace at DaimlerChrysler

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 00:00:00 GMT

This manager in India was faced with a poor-performing team and tremendous pressure to turn it around. To tackle this pressing problem, he took a surprising and totally unconventional approach: He fostered workplace friendships.

A Manager's Revolutionary Idea at International Paper

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT

This supervisor in Poland had many obstacles to overcome, not least of which was being a diminutive woman in a paper plant dominated by burly men. What's more, a palpable malaise permeated the place. But by giving her employees something they hadn't received before -- large doses of praise and recognition -- she turned around this formerly government-run warehouse. Her approach was downright radical.

China's Global Opportunities -- and Domestic Challenges

Thu, 10 Feb 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Once a huge potential market for goods produced elsewhere, China has become a powerful global competitor in its own right. But as Chinese companies plan to expand into other lands, recent research suggests that those businesses may confront serious marketing problems at home.

Caterpillar Constructs a Leadership Pipeline

Thu, 10 Jun 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Caterpillar Inc. is undertaking a major new construction project: building an even better organization -- one that excels at finding and developing its next generation of global leaders. And, using proven leadership assessment tools, the Fortune 100 giant has already unearthed top talent.

Toyota Applies Quality Management to People

Thu, 14 Aug 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Toyota is one of the best-run companies in the world. Much of its success is due to "lean thinking," a concept that aims to create additional value for the end customer, according to Mike Morrison, Dean of Toyota University. Morrison recently spoke with Gabriel Gonzalez-Molina, Ph.D., Gallup's Global Practice Leader of Path Management Practices and co-author of the book, Follow This Path, about his management discoveries.

Stryker's Investment in Talent Pays Off

Thu, 12 Jun 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Positioning employees so they can do what they do best isn't just good for them -- it's good for business. For Stryker Instruments, repositioning just one employee so he could use his talents more effectively saved the surgical equipment maker $1 million in electronic component sourcing.

All Together Now

Fri, 15 Mar 2002 00:00:00 GMT

Team-building was a high priority when Toyota Motor Sales USA opened its parts center in California in October 1996. Toyota's concerted effort to create great teams -- and the productivity that resulted -- illuminates what makes teams truly effective.