Toyota's Culture: A Case Study

In 2013, Toyota went through a reorganizing shuffle where Toyota’s culture went through changes too. Prior to 2013, decisions and orders were given directly from the Japanese headquarters. This did not give a chance to employees to voice out their concerns, to give them room for any decision making and to promote change that they felt was needed. Toyota’s cultural characteristics have changed as follows.

Teamwork – at Toyota, teams are used in each and every business area. According to Toyota, team work creates greater competences and enhances achievements. Due to teamwork, this has enhanced all employees’ involvement in their individual teams. Once Toyota employs a new team member, they have to undergo a teambuilding training program so that

Continuous improvement is a part of Toyota’s culture. To them, the most important thing about improvement is that employees get involved in analysis and decision making. The real meaning of continuous development is by forming an environment of continuous learning and a place where it not only consents change but it is received and fosters that change. This can only be done when respect is show to employees. This is done by giving the employees the ability to form part of improving the system and to be given the liberty to be active employees. It is in the management’s best interest to develop employees’ potential and give them room for growth. Toyota has a belief that their aim is to motivate employees to reach their goal and that is to produce the best quality vehicles possible. Thus, managers emphasize constantly the importance of their principles that of delivering quality to all their

Toyota is highly motivated to constantly learn and to become a generally better organisation. Their aim was to master in being the best automobile company and they have succeeded in achieving this. In line with this discipline, Toyota manages to bind to a learning organisation by showing continuous learning by giving endless opportunities to all leveled employees.

The third discipline is team learning. Toyota gives induction courses on team l earning, how to work in a group and the importance of working in a team as soon as new employees join Toyota. Toyota has witnessed how working in teams produces astonishing results and also how each employee is constantly growing and developing. Also, Toyota’s culture is that sharing one teams’ experience with the rest of the other teams to constantly enhance learning abilities and thus producing greater outcomes.

The following discipline is mental models. Toyota interprets and looks inward, they scrutinize and experiment mental models and are most obviously willing and open to change for the better. Toyota spend over JP¥1004,500m yearly to constantly research and find out what their customers wants and needs are. Toyota has a willingness culture to change and they have no problems to share their changes with each and every employee and ultimately with their final