Toyota Consulting Project - Essay Example

Toyota Motor Corporation is an automotive manufacturer that has its origin in Japan. It was founded in 1937, as indicated by Xin (2018), and its focus is on automobile designing and production. The company experiences limited diversity as most of the products that they deal with are automotive parts. Toyota is one of the biggest players in the automobile industry, competing with other big companies such as Honda Motor, Ford Company, Nissan, General Motors, BMW, and many more. According to Maiorescu's (2016) research, the company employed more than 350,000 employees all over the world. There is fluctuation experienced in the company due to the changes in the market conditions and the current situation in the transport sector.

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However, the organizational size of the company is set to increase as the business continues to grow. The automobile company's success is based on Toyota's ability to exploit its opportunities and its response to the current external factors (Soviar et al., 2019). The focus is on the opportunities and threats that are influencers of profitability and the company's health.

General environmental analysis (opportunities and threats)

Just like its competitors, Toyota has opportunities that are similar to other automobile companies. The automobile industry's current situation is a race among firms trying to exploit the current opportunities as soon as they can. For instance, there is a competition in technological advancement used to make products look more attractive and make them profitable. Any delay by Toyota on taking advantage of the opportunities can reduce Toyota's performance compared to the other firms. The other companies, as illustrated by Xin (2018), are very competitive, and they have resources for continuous growth and enhancement of their products and improvement of the business performance. Toyota being a major player, can utilize the external factors presented to them for their multinational business (Soviar et al., 2019). There are opportunities for Toyota in technology innovation, diversification, and growth, as well as expansion. The following are some of the main opportunities that are relevant to the company.

The first one is technological advancement. Toyota Company can exploit the opportunity by investing in research and development. Their products are among the most innovative. The company can increase its competitiveness by investing in R&D. Second is the sustainability issue, which is seen to affect many industries. Sustainability here is focusing more on the fuel economy and the environmental impacts on the business processes (Xin, 2018). For instance, they can focus on developing new engines and developing designs that shall improve the fuel economy of their automobiles, more so in the trucks.

Exploiting the opportunities can help the business improve its brand image, customer loyalty, and customer perception of its products. The final opportunity is in the diversification. Soviar et al. (2019) indicated that the automobile has limited diversification, and any drop in the market performance can significantly reduce the company's business. Toyota can, therefore, diversify on the business in a manner that can reduce the risks. For instance, they can invest more in the development of heavy machines and inventing robotics to distribute their products to different industries.

The current threats common in the automotive industry have a high possibility of weakening Toyota's Position as one of the leading firms in automobiles. These threats are commonly linked to the economy and some to the competitors' organizational activities (Xin, 2018). The current threats facing Toyota include aggressive competition where the other companies are directly competing against the Toyota Company. This is seen in aggressive marketing and rapid technological advancement and innovation that increase the competitive advantage. Also, there is a threat to the rise in fuel prices that have continued increasing overtime despite some declines. The customers in the market are looking for economical options in the automotive industries (Soviar et al., 2019). Therefore Toyota should continue producing hybrid cars and electric cars that will be better in the fuel economy. New entrants in the automobile industry. Most of the companies are from China, and they can enter the markets that are operated by Toyota.

PESTEL analysis

Political factors (P) - Toyota company is subjected to the effects in the prevailing political conditions. The external political factors that affect Toyota include political stability in the major markets, which is an opportunity for them. Another opportunity includes free trade agreements as well as government support and enhancement of ecofriendly products. The political stability in the major markets gives Toyota an opportunity to grow in low political tension.

Economic factors (E) – economic trends and influence in the company is visible. Significant economic factors in the macro-environment include rapid growth in the developing countries and the gradual growth in the US economy. Toyota is experiencing an opportunity for the improvement of its exports to the USA since it is the biggest market now.

Social, cultural factor (S) – the social factors facing Toyota Company in the remote and macro environment include the increased interest in hybrid cars as well as electric cars. There is also a widening wealth gap, which is a threat to them. The company has an opportunity to provide people with products that will satisfy their demand for cars. The widening gap in wealth is a threat to the company due to a decline in the number of the middle class who are the greatest market.

Technological factors (T) – since the company is technological, the technological factors are set to impact Toyota. Notable technological factors affecting the company include a rise in the use of e-commerce and mobile technology trends, which all are opportunities. However, there is a threat to cybercrime. Toyota, therefore, has an opportunity by exploiting third-party e-commerce services in sales and the use of mobile apps to increase customer engagement. They should also address the threat of cybercrime.

Ecological factors (E) – the ecological concerns are a need in Toyota's strategic decision making. They include climate change, the decline in the oil reserves, and sustainability, which are all opportunities. The company should, therefore, aim at the production of environmentally friendly products.

Legal factors (L) – in the case of Toyota, the external legal factors include improvement of the intellectual property law, the complexity of the environmental laws, and an increase in consumer laws that are opportunities. The company has an opportunity to grow without any infringement of the intellectual property. They also have an opportunity to produce high-quality goods and enhance customer satisfaction.

Porter’s 5/6 Forces (opportunities and threats)

Through the analysis of Porter's five on Toyota, which is an analysis of the Toyota Company, five forces reckon Toyota. To start with is the power of suppliers. The company and the other companies do not have the power to control the market. There is also a threat of the new entrants, as discussed above. The power of the buyer is the other force into consideration. There are many buyers in the automobiles with very great bargaining power. Soviar et al. (2019) stated that Toyota had made available fuel-efficient cars as compared to the other companies. There is also a threat of substitutes since there is the availability of ever-changing trends in the industry. Availability of ever-changing trends in the industry. Toyota has utilized the opportunity for the great demand for cars. There is also a competitive rivalry in the industry. The anticipation for low costs by the customers has seen Toyota experience pressure on the cost of products.

Strategic group analysis

Global factors in the environment are critical in the marketing strategies development of marketing strategies. Toyota's marketing sector should take into account some of the global environmental factors to make wise decisions (Soviar et al., 2019). Toyota has also devised to use efficient and effective ads on the internet. They have also focused on corporate social responsibility in creating a positive image and reputation.

Marketers are also advised to take into account economic fluctuations that are current in the global market. In their marketing strategy, the management is aware of the target in the international consumers (Xin, 2018). They have sought to use flexible, reliable, and structures that are agile. The work culture for Toyota has an emphasis on efficient management. The company perceives the employees as knowledge workers applying wisdom for their main environments. They are also have used some marketing strategies that serve expansion into different markets.

References

Maiorescu, R. D. (2016). Crisis management at General Motors and Toyota: An analysis of gender-specific communication and media coverage. Public Relations Review, 42(4), 556-563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2016.03.011

Soviar, J., Holubcík, M., Vodák, J., Rechtorík, M., & Pollák, F. (2019). The Presentation of Automotive Brands in the On-Line Environment—the Perspective of KIA, Peugeot, Toyota, and VW in the Slovak Republic. Sustainability, 11(7), 2132. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11072132

Xin, C. H. (2018). Toyota Motor Corporation roe under firm internal and macroeconomics factors. Pdf. 43 (130) https://works.bepress.com/chen-huixin/1/download/