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Toyota in North America

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Toyota in North America
Donald L. Woolridge, Sr.
Indiana Wesleyan University
February 20, 2013
Course ADM537A
Toyota in North America This paper will provide an overview and history of Toyota in general and the company’s operations in North America and its product lines specifically; share comments on the company’s organizational structure and senior management leadership style; discuss its nearest competitors – Ford, GM and Chrysler, known as the Detroit 3; share the weighted average cost of capital; provide insight in the company’s rationale/methodology for evaluating capital budgeting opportunities in North America; review the economic forecast for the industry; show the characteristics of common stock and bonds, share key financial ratios for three years, comparing to industry and nearest competitors; and in conclusion share a strong, fact-based summary of why or why not a person should make an investment in the common stock of Toyota.
Historical Overview Toyota is a family-owned and operated company with very humble beginnings. Sakichi Toyoda, his son, Kiichiro Toyoda and Taiichi Ohno all played an important role in not only laying the foundation for what would become the automotive giant Toyota, but also in the development of the system that has revolutionized lean manufacturing; the Toyota Production System (TPS) (ToyotaGeorgetown.com, 2006-2013). Sakichi Toyoda invented the automated loom which ensured quality of product by stopping when threads would snap. This allowed one operator to handle dozens of looms in one operating cycle. One operator having control over quality and the ability to perform several tasks is a key concept in lean manufacturing. The guiding philosophy of TPS is to build the highest quality vehicle and the lowest possible cost to customers in the safest environment. “Sakichi’s invention reduced defects and

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