GM and Saturn
This is an excerpt from the paper...
When GM decided to build its Saturn model, the company made the decision (we do not know how) to use a different process than it used in the past. This meant that a large number of robots would be used at the new plant, and that the workers at the plant would be highly skilled in their fields. Instead of making the decision of where to place the plant in private, as companies of this size often do, GM opted instead to use a public decision making process. It was interested not only in rational factors such as tax breaks and logistical issues, but also in behavioral factors, such as quality of life and the community. This led to a public competition for the Saturn factory (which would, after all, provide jobs to the community in which it was eventually located), and an interesting decision making process.The challenge that GM faces is whether it can take the lessons and processes from the first Saturn factory experience and duplicate them when making other choices for facilities in the future. In fact, the company must be able to determine whether the site location process led to an appropriate choice, and whether the company should try to duplicate the process or use a different decision making tool in the future. GM had the luxury of combining decision making processes, using both a rational and a behavioral model in its selection of a location for the Saturn plant. Rational decision making processes are based on objective information w
. . .
which would previously have been unavailable. While this increases the decision making process time, and even the costs associated with it, this highly interactive decision making process is one that is likely to produce the best long-term results for the organization.
Recommendation
It is recommended that GM continue to conduct its decision making process for plant locations in a highly public manner with quantitative and qualitative factors taken into account. The company must be aware that this introduces a greater likelihood of group polarization and irrational influences, but this is likely to result in a better relationship between the company and the community in which it eventually locates, and is likely to improve the company's long-term prospects.
Action Plan
Senior management needs to decide that a new plant is warranted, and determine what who should be on the site selection committee; ideally, this committee should involve representatives from various departments, including production, marketing, finance and human resources. The committee should coordinate the publicity announcing that GM is searching for a new site location, and put together a Request for Proposal so that communities can submit their regions f
. . .
Some common words found in the essay are:
Analysis Using, Solutions Implementing, Solutions GM, Analysis GM, Wall Street, Definition GM, Definition Companies, Action Plan, Recommendation Two-tier, Plan Senior, decision process, two-tier contract, senior employees, selection process, two-tier contracts, labor costs, decision makers, two-tier system, employees company, senior workers, two-tier contracts companies, theory two-tier contracts, search conducted privately, rational factors tax, gm searching site,
Approximate Word count = 2487
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page)
More Essays on GM and Saturn
|
Customer Service
to Over
32,000 Professionally Written Papers!!!
