Nissan's COGENT
Overview of Nissan Company

Nissan has been around for almost 90 years now, making it one of the oldest and leading manufacturers of vehicles in Japan. It was initially based in Japan alone but with passage of time, it went on and expanded itself to become a powerful worldwide company. Nissan Motor Company Ltd. gave the world Datsun as its first brand of cars which was highly successful making Nissan the third largest automobile company in Japan and 5th largest in the world. Nissan joined hands with French company Renault SA in 1999 to become an even bigger and more powerful force in the automobile industry. More production centers were created in the U.S., UK, Mexico and Spain.

Situation analysis

Nissan started a comprehensive supplier training program that is called NX96 and while this program was hailed for being the first of its kind, it has not always been very welcome by….

Nissan United Kingdom, Ltd.: Case Study
This particular case study looks at Nissan Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd., created in 1984 as a manifestation of Nissan Japan's global investment arenas, with production beginning in 1986. Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK Limited (NMUK) is at the present day, the most massive manufacturing plant for cars in the United Kingdom, and is found near Sunderland. In terms of productivity, cars produced, and people hired, it is the most productive car manufacturing plant in Europe.

Nissan headquarters eventually decided that they would bolster their UK manufacturing program by increasing the production to 60% in the next two years and then by 80% in the fourth year, with a plan to create 100,000 cars. However, before all this productivity occurred, the case examines the working relationship and related complications between the U.K. And Nissan. Prior to this working relationship in 1974, "Datsun U.K. was outselling Toyota, its nearest….

Nissan Case Study
The auto industry has seen many turbulent periods prior to 2008. The very nature of the auto industry is that of various cycles of optimism and pessimism on the part of the consumer. As economies move through their natural cycles of boom and bust, so too do the autos that are prominent within that particular region. Tata motors goes through the came cycles in India as Nissan does in Japan. Such is the nature of a capitalistic society in which many of these businesses operate in. However, one key difference was the extent of the losses incurred by Japanese auto makers. What ensued was a massive restructuring in regards to cost structure, organizational structure, and product focus. As a result of this restructuring, it can be argued that Nissan is poised for extreme growth for the future.

The automotive industry is characterized with low margins and high fixed asset….

Only in conditions where ship owners fired up cold boilers, using Bunker C. fuel, when winds were blowing from the north, under not too dry or not too wet conditions, would possible damage occur. Under such conditions, the smoke particles could have turned to sulpheric acid, and had a corrosive effect on the vehicle paint (Nissan Motor Corp. v. Maryland Shipbuilding, 1982).
The Court found that the defendants did not fire up the boilers, and thus, were not directly negligent. Only the ship owners could have fired up the boilers when leaving the docks. The shipyard employees were clearly not directly responsible for the "light off" procedure and thus, could not be held responsible for any damage caused by such a procedure. Had Nissan chosen to sue the ship owners, the Court noted, the vessels could have been seized under admiralty process, and the ship owners could have been liable….

Change Management at Nissan
Change Model at Nissan

In its early years, Nissan quickly rose to become Japan's second largest carmaker, second only to Toyota. Its fame continued as it became one of the largest exporters to the Unites States. However, in the late 1980s, its position began to weaken and it began to lose ground. Competition from rivals, in addition to an appreciation in the yen contributed to Nissan's fall from grace. In 1987, Nissan made moves to double production capacity in response to a booming Japanese economy. However, in order to do this, they incurred more than $22 bn (IBS Center for Management Research, 2003). This move might have signaled the beginning of the end for Nissan, had it not been for a manager who was known for his ability to turn failing companies around.

In 1999, when Renault bought Nissan, the company was in bad shape. High production costs, poor….

The identification of resources, as well as capabilities, enables a comparison of strengths and weaknesses against opportunities and threats (McGee et al., 2005). The value of these resources should increase in the event of an alliance.
The three companies have considerable financial resources given their global presence and a combined equity of almost a hundred billion Euros. They have manufacturing facilities within the NAFTA area, the EU, and the BIC countries. These two resources represent a strong position within the industry since the companies can save cost by manufacturing parts in a location that is least costly. This list of resources is not exhaustive since each member in the alliance has other partnership agreements.

enault and Daimler have a strong research tradition that will drive the production of new engines. Nissan, on the other hand, has a production method that it has perfected over the years. Each of the members of….

Innovations in product are not transmitted throughout the organization. This means that there are production synergies between the different Coloplast facilities that are not presently exploited.
The company can mitigate the impact of health care reform therefore by improving its product processes. Their industry is beginning to shift from cash cow status to one characterized by tight margins and high volumes. Coloplast must become a low-cost producer, to use Michael Porter's terminology (Porter, 1980). This is going to force Coloplast to shift its core competencies.

The current core competencies for Coloplast are its experience and knowledge of its own products, its customer-focused product innovation, its value-added services and its extensive knowledge of the health-care systems in which it operates (Brown, et al.). These competencies are more congruent with an organization that is engaged in a differentiation strategy. This was an allowable mindset when Coloplast was able to leverage its knowledge of….

Without a shared culture, however, a higher degree of integration may be difficult. Yet, it is the natural next step and is facilitated by Ghosn's promotion.
Recommendation and Implementation

I would recommend that Ghosn maintain the same level of integration between the two companies, but initiate a new set of strategic objectives. The current model of managerial collaboration has been successful thus far, so the structure should be maintained. The strategic focus, then, should be on continued market share and profit improvements. The two companies have demonstrated that the existing structure is powerful enough to transform an established company like Nissan. With strong objectives set that build upon the work that has already been done, the companies can continue along their existing path.

The structure of the company, with the cross-functional teams, is already in place to carry out the recommendations. The most challenging part of the recommendation is the building of….

Theories and Techniques Just in time is an inventory strategy employed to increase efficiency and decrease wastes by receiving goods only when they are needed in the production process. Toyota Production System (TPS) is a production system that provides the best quality, lowest cost, and shortest lead time by eliminating waste (Chiarini & Vagnoni, 2015). TPS comprises of two pillars, namely just in time and jidoka. Lean production is a systematic method of minimizing waste within a manufacturing system without having to sacrifice on productivity. These three concepts are related in that they are all aimed towards the reduction and elimination of waste within the production system. The three concepts are mainly employed by manufacturing companies to improve their productivity. The advantages that Nissan gained from using the just in time strategy is that the company was able to rapidly increase its production and exports. The disadvantage of just in time….

" Change must therefore be accomplished by the institution of a strong leadership of just a single individual (Kotter,1996,p.25) .In this case, the person was Ghosn. Change however requires a special team of leaders as well as managers who have a common goal that is communicated succinctly by the team leader. Ghosn therefore "walked the talk" since his leadership style which was transformational, brought real change to the organization.
Conclusion

It is important to note that for any organization to succeed, a balance must be struck between leadership and the management. This is because there can never be any form of transformation without a true leader. All successful organizational transformations are only achieved via the right mix of leadership and management.

eferences

Baggaley, B. 2006. Using strategic performance measurements to accelerate lean performance. Cost Management (January/February): 36-44

Cloud, C (2010). Epilogue: Change leadership and leadership development. New Directions for Community Colleges; Spring2010, Issue 149, p73-79,

Elving,….

Plan and Instructions for Upper Management and Board Members at NissanToday, traditional glass ceilings that have limited womens access to leadership positions are shattering around the world and growing numbers of multinational corporations have come to the same conclusion that gender equity in corporate boardrooms translates into improved organizational performance and productivity. Likewise, a growing body of scholarship confirms that gender equity in the corporate boardroom can have numerous other benefits for companies of all sizes and types. In addition, this same conclusion has been reached by top leadership teams in companies of all sizes and types, competing in virtually all industries and cultural settings. There remains a profound lack of progress, however, in achieving this outcome in far too many multinational corporations due in large part to the amount of time that it requires to accumulate the requisite experience in historically male-dominated industries such as the automotive industry in….

Managing Operating Exposure and FX isk at Nissan:
Global businesses are usually exposed to financial risks like currency volatility. The foreign exchange risks, which are commonly known as FX risks, have significant effects on all aspects of a global company. Notably, the foreign exchange risks affect firms across various industries including the automobile industry. In this industry, the operations and manufacturing processes of auto makers are usually affected by currency fluctuations. An example of a global firm in the automobile industry that has been involved in managing the foreign exchange risks and operating exposure is Nissan.

In 1999, Nissan was in a death spiral as the firm was experiencing heavy losses, carrying massive debts, and has a bad reputation. During this period, Carlos Ghosn was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer in order to help save the company that was sinking into further challenges and complexities. In attempts to rescue the firm,….

S. This has partially continued during the 90s as well, so protectionist barriers is one of the things Nissan needs to consider when exporting to its main partners.
There are two different actions Nissan may consider in the future in this sense. The first one refers to the fact that Renault, an European company, still holds a significant part of Nissan shares, which may facilitate exports on the European market. On the other hand, trade barriers can generally be avoided by direct implementation in the respective country, a measure which Japanese companies, especially Toyota, have successfully applied in the U.S. during the 80s.

2. Internal competencies

A. General Motor seems to be currently both the most important producer and the sales leader. However, this should come with several amendments. If we are referring to the market leader, there are several criteria worth mentioning. First of all, the number of cars being sold, but….

Disaster ecovery
ecovery: Disaster and Crisis

Disaster recovery has become an important aspect of a company's strategic plan. The main reason for an increased concern can be attributed to the fact that integration and alliances at an international level have increased so that there are more linkages and higher interdependencies that have increased the exposure of people to international risk. This also means that companies are more prone to be affected by a force majeure impacting a vendor located in another part of the world. Some cases that have recently come to light in the spate of the Japanese Earthquake are the impact on General Motors leave alone Nissan. Moreover, giants such as Sony have been impacted in the wake of natural disasters in Thailand where a Tsunami impacted the Integrated Chip provider, making it difficult for Sony to continue to manufacture its products.

In light of these vulnerabilities it becomes increasingly important….

Although Carlos Ghosn's leadership abilities cannot be contested, there are certain aspects that must be taken into consideration when analyzing his leadership style. He is considered a successful leader, given the results reported by Nissan and enault and the recognition pachieved from his peers. However, the democratic and laissez-faire style imposed by Ghosn can lead to negative effects on medium term and on long-term. This is because this relaxed attitude he encourages within his companies might determine some of the workers to not take their jobs as seriously as they should. Their motivational levels might be reduced as a result. Therefore, Ghosn should try to impose a firmer leadership style.

Conclusions

Carlos Ghosn is one of the most successful leaders on global level. His interesting approach to leadership and the results he obtained through his companies have determined specialists in the field to analyze his behavior. Their findings are very interesting for….