com) Legal Actions

Information about ongoing legal actions is typically disclosed in the annual report. An examination of Cummins' Form 10-K from 2008 reveals that while the company is subject to a wide range of legal risks, there are no major legal actions pending. Referring to environment-related legal actions, the company states that "we do not believe that these lawsuits are material individually or in the aggregate."

Negative Publicity

At present, there is little indication that Cummins is faced with any significant negative publicity. The company faces some minor environmental lawsuits, which may not be financial material but could generate some negative publicity should the company be found culpable for any impropriety.

Cummins' track record with regards to negative publicity -- or the lack thereof -- is enviable for a multinational country, in particular one with manufacturing operations overseas. Cummins' approach has been proactive. There are hints of the company's approach in its stated core values and in its vision statement, which contains two lines about corporate leadership.

Competitors

Cummins has a variety of competitors in its core industries. In engines, Cummins competes against Caterpillar, Detroit Diesel Corporation and Navistar. Detroit Diesel is a private corporation and does not publish financial statements. Navistar is around the same size as Cummins, with $11.57 billion in sales, compared with $10.8 billion at Cummins. Caterpillar has sales of $36.22 billion, but operates many more business lines. Its engine business is smaller than that of Cummins. According to the 2008 Form 10-K, other engine competitors are Volvo Powertrain, International Truck and Engine Corporation, Mercedes Benz, Volvo, Renault, Scania, Weichai Power Co, Nissan Diesel, Yanmar and Deutz.

In power generation, Cummins competes against Tognum and Mitsubishi primarily, as well as FG Wilson, Kohler, SDMO and Generac. In the components segment, Cummins competes with a variety of different firms around the world, including Donaldson, Clarcor, Mann + Hummel Group, Tokyo Roki, Borg-Warner, Bosch, Tenneco and Honeywell. While each of the first three operating groups compete against other large players in a global environment, the distribution...

One of the company's mission statements is to create wealth for all stakeholders. This reflects a commitment to the company to manufacture products that add value to its customers. Cummins views its customers as perhaps the most important stakeholder. Meeting customers' needs, the company reasons, will allow it to create wealth for the other stakeholders.
Primary among the other stakeholders are the firm's shareholders. The shareholders are the firm's ownership group, and the management team acts as their agents, undertaking activities that will result in an increase in shareholder wealth.

Another major stakeholder group is comprised of the employees of Cummins. The company is committed to improving their wealth as well. They have, in past annual reports, alluded to the success they have had in creating jobs as a result of the Six Sigma improvement projects that they have undertaken. Success at Cummins will naturally flow to the employees in the form of increased job opportunities and increased wages.

There are a number of tertiary stakeholders as well. In its core values, Cummins refers to its commitments both to the environment and to the communities in which it operates. Cummins keeps its commitments to these entities in mind when undertaking its activities around the world. This is part of its proactive approach that has allowed the company to avoid negative publicity, which often arises when companies pursue the needs of their other stakeholders without considering environment and community.

Other tertiary stakeholders include the company's suppliers and their employees, the governments of the countries in which they operate, their joint venture partners and others with whom Cummins has contractual arrangements, and the company's retirees as well.

Works Cited:

Cummins website. Various pages. Retrieved February 22, 2010 from http://www.cummins.com

Marx, M. (2005). Cummins Inc. Six Sigma Companies. Retrieved February 22, 2010 from http://www.sixsigmacompanies.com/archive/cummins_inc_six_sigma.html

Cummins 2008 Form 10-K.