Foreign Automakers Research Articles

Industrial Sunrise? The Chrysler Bailout, the State, and the Re-industrialization of the Canadian Automotive Sector, 1975-1986

After 1980 deindustrialization was the prevailing condition in the North American automotive industry—but not in Canada. Much of that difference was due to an aggressive federal intervention that demanded investment and production from foreign automakers. Using Chrysler as a case study, the paper asserts that state policies such as the 1980 bailout and the 1965 Canada-U.S. Auto Pact actually led to a re-industrialization of the Canadian sector. The paper challenges older dependency theories that assume deindustrialization, and recent work that focuses upon worker activism, as the reason that Canada’s industrial heartland did not rust.

Investment strategies by foreign automobile firms in China: A comparative study of Volkswagen, Honda, and Hyundai

The main question motivating this research is: why did foreign automakers (i.e. Volkswagen, Honda, and Hyundai) decide to enter different markets within China (Shanghai, Guangdong and Beijing respectively)? We analyze this situation in three steps. First, by applying Dunning's Eclectic (OLI) Paradigm, we show Volkswagen, Honda and Hyundai entered China to exploit their technological firm specific assets. Instead of traditional market instruments, these firms engaged in FDI to access China's large market because of the high regulations on its automobile industry. The second section incorporates the Diamond Model analysis and concludes that Shanghai is the most attractive automobile cluster. Although the OLI predicts all firms to enter the most attractive location, Shanghai, the firms actually entered three separate regions. In the following section, we adopt the Imbalance Theory to clarify the rationale behind choosing alternate locations. The Imbalance Theory conclusively demonstrates that geographical diversification occurred as a direct result of the strategic goals of the individual firms.

Politics of Scale and the Globalization of the South Korean Automobile Industry

This article explains the liberalization and globalization of the South Korean automobile industry, with an emphasis on the multiscalar processes of globalization. In particular, it explores the processes by which the South Korean government shifted its policy for the automobile industry, from a nationalist and protectionist orientation toward liberalization in the late 1990s, which, in turn, attracted inward investments from foreign automakers and facilitated the globalization of the nation’s automobile market. While exploring the roles of diverse actors and forces—operating at various geographic scales—in these processes, I placed more analytical weight on examining the ways in which contestation between national and local forces contributed to the government’s liberalization policy. I argue that the globalization of the South Korean automobile industry in recent years was not only an outcome of the globalizing strategies of foreign automakers, but also was facilitated by an institutional fix by the nation-state (particularly the liberalization of policy) to a regulatory deficit, which stemmed from the national-local tension with respect to a state-led economic restructuring project.

The Importance of Revisiting roi

HAVING JUST READ the lead articles by Skinner and by Solovoy and Chaiken for this issue of Frontiers, I am preparing to update the return on investment (ROi) analysis presented periodically to the Memorial Health governing board. This report discusses a number of information technology (IT) projects implemented during the past 18 months. You could say that commenting on these articles is appropriate for the world that I am currently living in. THE MYTH OF TECHNOLOGY'S VALUE I could not agree more with Skinner that IT today is often thought of as a magic pill or automatic solution to many of the business process problems that healthcare faces. Everything from expediting payment of accounts on a quick, real-time basis to making sure that medications are administered properly to noting medication interactions as the physician is writing the order may be improved by IT. However, the decision to implement technology to solve problems in healthcare is complex; when determining ROIs, an organization must consider how technology is tied to the strategic objectives of the organization. At Memorial Health, the technology vision ties closely with the overall business objectives of the organization. As chief information officer, I do not propose individual technology solutions. The department heads and administrators create their individual business plans, and they, with the assistance of the information services department, are responsible for determining whether a technology tool will help them achieve their goals and objectives. The information services department acts essentially as a liaison and research arm to let the business leaders know what technologies are available and the capabilities of those technologies. Any ROI assessment for technology implementation is tied to the overall RO I calculation done on the specific business project. So, similar to Skinner's comments that IT is basically a business tool once you get past all the hype and mysticism, one school of thought says that it should be thought of as just a part of a project, much as building materials would be when building a new emergency department. However, bigger issues come into play when determining what metrics to use for measuring return on investment. NEW METRICS FOR ROI Ten years ago, measuring the ROI for IT projects was pretty easy, as most of the projects were finance based in nature. You could determine whether the number of days in accounts receivable was reduced, whether submitting claims electronically resulted in a lower denial rate, or whether cash flow increased. The metrics today for most IT projects remain the same in the financial arena, but as we move to a more clinically oriented world, many of the metrics must change. As both lead articles stated, ROI measurements on clinical projects are quality based in nature. These include: * reduction of medical errors, * overall reduction in the number of sentinel events, * number of alerts generated at the point of order entry. These quality measures, for the most part on the clinical side of IT, are not tracked today as closely and accurately as are the financial measurements such as accounts receivable days and cash flow. The Institute of Medicine (2ooo) report outlining preventable medical errors and the Leapfrog Group's push for quality have been widely discussed. While these efforts have been catalysts for quality improvement in healthcare, ultimately, the consumer will drive healthcare to a more quality-focused practice in everyday business. I concur with Skinner's comments on this issue comparing other industries to healthcare. In the 1970s the auto industry did not pay much attention to quality until foreign automakers entered the market with a higher-quality product. The American auto industry was ultimately driven by the buying patterns of the consumers as they moved to a higher-quality, same-cost product. …

Can Hyundai go it alone?

The Korean automobile industry has progressed rapidly during the last decade. Hyundai Motor Co. (HMC) selected a unique strategy of self-reliance. As a new entrant firm to U.S. markets from NICs, Hyundai developed its own models, the Pony and Excel, with minimal foreign investment but with technical collaboration with foreign automakers. This fact distinguishes Hyundai from other joint venture automakers in developing countries. Hyundai's strategy now faces several challenges, such as the increase of trade protectionism, the rapid technological changes in the auto industry and the intense competition from domestic competitors which are supported by major multinational automobile makers. Now Hyundai has to respond to the new environment. Hyundai's strategy is traced in this article, particularly focusing on Hyundai's technology development strategy and its implications.