That is leads the Chinese market and is a major player in the U.S. market provides it with opportunities for economies of scale, and to introduce new products. The company's size gives is considerable bargaining power with suppliers. This in turn allows it some degree of cost control, especially now that legacy costs have been reduced. In addition, GM has a high degree of brand recognition. While its reputation is not always good, the names are well-known to consumers around the world.
GM's reputation does need to be considered a weakness. The company's reputation for quality is lower than that of competitors, which makes it difficult to shift towards any strategy other than cost leadership. GM is at present unsure of its vision. While the case was made above why this is not necessarily bad, it is definitely unorthodox. For the company to embark on any sort of long-term strategy, vision and mission must be defined to guide the formulation and implementation of that strategy. In addition, the company has an overcomplicated organizational structure. This inhibits its ability to implement company-wide initiatives, because some elements of the company are far removed from head office. Consistency in market, human resources strategy and it platform implementation are going to be particularly difficult, given the present size and complexity of General Motors.
Automobiles are still big business, and this means that there is considerable opportunity for a company that is well-positioned and ready to take advantage. One such opportunity is in global markets. Much of the growth in the automobile industry at present is in international markets. Emerging markets in particular are characterized by a large number of first-time car buyers. This creates substantial opportunity for GM. At present, they are taking advantage of this opportunity in China and are moving towards taking advantage in India as well. There is considerable opportunity in a broad range of other markets as well, some of which are probably underserved. There are substantial first mover advantages to be won should GM choose to pursue some of these markets.
Another opportunity comes with improving domestic market share. While the U.S. market is subject to intense competition and flatlining sales, General Motors remains a predominantly American company and one that for most of its history was the leader in U.S. auto sales. The company still has considerable brand power and a solid distribution network in the U.S. The slump in sales can be largely attributed to a mismatch between price and quality, a function of both being unfavorable. This means that GM can improve domestic sales by lowering prices and improving the quality of its vehicles. This may be a loose strategy, but the underlying point is that there is opportunity for GM to improve its domestic business and increase domestic market share, and that doing so would be of significant benefit to the company.
The final opportunity is in eco-friendly cars. With peak oil past, the prices for petroleum are likely to being a long-term upward trajectory. While this is unlikely to have a significant impact in the short-term, over the long-term this represents a significant market opportunity. There are some incentives in a few countries for the development of high-efficiency or alternative fuel cars, and although growth is currently slow, many industry observers feel that when the market begins to demand these vehicles, automakers will want to be ready or lose first mover advantages to their competitors. With GM's size and reach, it has the potential to be a game-changer with respect to fuel-friendly vehicles, should is so desire.
There are also a number of threats in the external environment. The first is competition. One of the reasons underlying GM's decline in the domestic market is the entrance of dozens of new competitors. Many of these were able to outperform GM, and ultimately stole market share from the company. The domestic North American market and the European market remain intensely competitive, and emerging markets are becoming increasingly competitive. GM can expect more competition to enter China and India, both from local sources and major global automakers. Many such makers -- from the U.S., Europe and Japan -- are facing mature home markets and are therefore competing with each other to seek out and capture sources of growth. As long as emerging markets are growing, this competition will only be moderately intense, but if growth stagnates, automakers will see the level of competitive intensity rise.
As Bob Lutz...
The second decision was implemented and the same treatment would be applied to both Opel and Vauxhall. The first alternative would not have been extremely viable for the simple reason that both German and British manufacturers are subjected to the same environmental features and this means that there is no logic reason as to why they should be treated separately; they both fall under regulations of the European Community,
" Conclusion Overall GM is currently confronting some of the most difficult obstacles that it has ever had to overcome. Government intervention is no guarantee that the company will be able to overcome these obstacles. Billions of dollars have been given to the company in an effort to save it from further demise. However, capital alone will not save the company, there must be a strategic effort of the management to properly
Although some external players, such as potential new executives, may prefer this plan, there is little evidence that the major stakeholders have interest in major culture change. The third alternative is to place emphasis on operational issues first and foremost. Under terms of its new deal with the UAW, GM will be closing plants and shedding workers, and it is trying to sell off some of its underperforming units (Hummer,
While they still mention the financial artifice used by the company to repay the loan with other TARP money, they look at the issue from an accounting standpoint and explain the logics of the move. Each of the three authors inserts himself in the story line and concludes his work with his own interpretation. Ed Morrissey for instance argues that the massive usage of governmental funds forces GM to increase
When GM gave up control to Cerberus, they got in a pickle...It [Cerberus through GMAC] has taken away flexibility from dealers" (Welch 2008). "GMAC also said it will suspend bonuses to dealers who earned the lender's Platinum designation for bringing the firm strong buyer volume" (Welch 2008). This essentially discourages dealers who engage in hard-sell tactics, and encourages consumers to take on 'more car' than they can afford. But the
She is perceived as vulnerable by her lovers, both her Englishman and her American, and exploited in different ways. Over the course of the novel, because it is told from Fowler's perspective, the reader never gains a sense of who Phuong is as a human being, only what he sees in her, and what he projects onto her image. Phuong becomes more of a metaphor for South Vietnam itself,
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