Fiat - a Troubled European Car Giant Essay

What is business ethics? It is formally defined as the critical, structured examination of how people & institutions should behave in the world of commerce. Specifically, it examines self-interest and profits, versus moral values and ethics. The Ford Pinto was a new stylish car, which gave Ford an ultimatum.

In the hyper competitive world of today’s mega corporations controlled by the sway of the stock market, giant old industrial era companies rule over the automobile market in the United States as well as large parts of the global automobile market. Companies such as General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford were at the center of it until the economic crisis now known as the Great Recession of the late 2000s. The whole market was declining in sales with General Motors and Chrysler taking the biggest hits while Ford only suffered decline comparable to foreign automakers’, Honda and Toyota, levels due to restructuring in prior years. However, the tipping point was edging closer to bankruptcy with General Motors and Chrysler that ultimately

The Fiat Auto acquisition of Chrysler occurred in 2014, which turned Chrysler into an Italian automobile manufacturer (Abrams, 2014, para. 1). By combining these two firms one automaker now have strong ties to the American and Italian auto industry. By Fiat gaining Chrysler’s reputable name it can easily penetrate the American market. This why the acquisition between Fiat Auto and Chrysler can be seen as a growth strategy. Fiat now competes in a large global market, which subjects the firm to many different external environments. The General Enviornment consist of factors that affect every industry, for example taxation. A firm that operates in the auto industry and one that operates in healthcare industry are both going to be subject to government taxation and affect by it. In order to work efficiently and eliminate the threat of general enviornment risk the firm must use a strategy of including these risks in their work process. For example, if Fiat operations in the United States (U.S.) have to follow the U.S. Department of Labor regulations and pay any employee that works over forty hours in a workweek, overtime pay (2015, para.1). In order to reduce the cost associated with paying overtime and keep the budget in line, Fiat might consider hiring in part-time help during its anticipated high volume periods. This will keep production costs low and allow for a larger margin of profit.

In 2008, Tata motors had completed acquisition of the two British brands Jaguar and Land Rover from US based ford motors for 2.3 billion.

An observable artifact is defined as the physical manifestations of an organization. These artifacts can include a company’s dress code, stories about the company and rituals within the company. The main observable artifact that Chrysler had and the reason Mr. Marchionne was upset about was the way manager Fong doubled rebates in order to make sales. This tactic was part of the culture that led to the company not being profitable. Another observable artifact came with the changes Mr. Marchionne implemented such as his weekly meetings with his staff. Espoused values can defined as the normal standards

The crisis of Chrysler stemmed from falling sustainability, complacent bureaucracy, and misguided management. Sergio Marchionne (CEO of Fiat) was named CEO of Chrysler June 2009. Two managerial challenges that Mr. Marchionne is facing at Chrysler are managing for both competitive advantage and information technology. Prior to Marchionne taking the reins, rebates were being given by Chrysler per the sales chief Mr. Fong to match the amount given by the government. Once Mr. Marchionne took over, the focus changed from trying to appease the customer through rebates to ensuring quality products and innovative features. Mr. Marchionne's goal was to improve management, return to profitability, and increase market shares. He also restructured the

For example, enforcement of new laws related to CO2 emission and change in EU legislation related to end-of-life vehicle (ELV) recycling are major political factors that affect BMW manufacturing processes. Level of political stability in emerging markets such as Russia, China, and Brazil can be highlighted as additional political factors impacting BMW in a way that political instability in these countries can have negative implications on local consumer spending patterns. Additionally, in case of political instability BMW investments in respective countries may be subjected to

The purpose of this essay is to provide a complete analysis of BMW Group. First, some background information about the company will be provided for a better comprehension of this study. Next, BMW will be assessed from a microeconomic point of view: its demand curve, organisational structure, customers, suppliers, strengths, weaknesses and its operating environment. Then, this firm will be reviewed in context of its sector from a macroeconomic perspective and more specifically its market environment, followed by a PEST analysis of other external factors such as GDP, interest rate, cost of raw materials. This study will be further quantified by a ratio analysis in order to evaluate BMW’s financial health. In the end you

Fiat and Chrysler had very different points of strengths and weaknesses before and after the alliance. They both were also in very different circumstances that created varying levels of success domestically as well as internationally. Fiat’s points of strengths include small cars, their diesel engines and transmissions, as well as in exotic cars. Fiat is one of the largest producing car manufacturers in all of Europe, particularly in Italy. Fiat is also the leading seller in Brazil, producing a quarter of the markets cars and light trucks. However, only leading in this country and partially the continent did not satisfy their hunger for global expansion, as international sales were relatively low. The United States was a market that Fiat was ready to re-enter but couldn’t do so effectively without forming an alliance that would allow for the manufacturing of their brand of cars. Fiat aimed to fix its tarnished reputation in the U.S of producing lower quality vehicles relative to its European siblings. Fiat does have strong leadership in their CEO, Sergio Marchionne. Chrysler has always been a step behind GM and Ford in quality and technology in its long history. Surviving without these two elements in this industry is not possible. They were always late to any consumer demands met by its competitors and were in constant economic trouble. Chrysler’s management during previous partnerships was not

Internal competition to Fiat come from the "big Three", Ford, GM, and Chrysler, whilst external competition comes from makers such as Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai. Since Fiat will also be using the Alfa Romeo Giulietta model it will also be faced with competition from other manufacturers of that model that included Nissan, Mazda, Volkswagen, BMW, Audi, and Mercedes . The competition will rest on factors such as size of vehicle, fuel economy, seating, engine, and price with safety being a primary factor for many families.

Global presence. Volkswagen is conducting its operations in more than 150 countries worldwide and is expected to become the worlds best and biggest auto manufacturer by 2018. Volkswagen manufacturing operations, for its cars, are currently being conducted in more than 100 plants across the globe. Other than General Motors and Toyota, no other automotive company has the resources available to compete with Volkswagen in terms of global presence.

Renault seeks to order CKD-parts from various suppliers, acquire them at a competitive price and in enhanced quality; therefore CKDs were not only ordered form the mother site in Romania but also from local plants. Domestic vendors or other regional sites were also taken into consideration. Sourcing parts from the mother site in Romania could come with a 0% duty however outbound logistics could eat into theses saving. Purchasing parts from local suppliers than using CKD parts would also depends on the competiveness of the supplier in each country. A volume increase correlated to the increases in competiveness of local suppliers. Cost reduction in operations came about due to Renault’s usage of segments of the B-platform, which was also used for the Nissan Micra and Renault Modus. Depending on the end market, Renault would use either its own name or the brand name Dacia. Foreign Trade Related Risks Inflation and foreign exchange related risks are very dominating risk factors which are closely watched and analysed. Here the inflation rate of the local currency and also the exchange

In the Fiat’s Group it is noticed a high impact turnaround, the re-launch of the company had been made possible by the identification and implementation of a very clear strategic choices which had a significant effect on the firm’s business model in relation to its competitors. The positive aspects of their strategy is the risk reduction due to the diversification of the Group’s business, which in turnaround process lower

1) The buyer decision process of traditional Porsche customers relies on the motivations that determine these people to select this brand. Their purchasing decision process is based on the exclusivity of the brand that is connected with the car owner. In their opinion, by purchasing a Porsche, traditional customers purchase the exclusivity and luxury associated with the brand. These customers want to purchase a car that reflects their social status and their financial power. In addition to this, they are not interested in the utility of the car, but in the characteristics that differentiate it from utility cars. These traditional buyers are rather interested in their feeling while driving a Porsche in comparison with the size, price, or fuel economy of the car.

The characteristics of the global motor vehicle industry are a boom in certain places and a bust in others all due to economic conditions in different nations. Four years after tow of Detroit Michigan’s big three went into bankruptcy American car makers are going “full throttle” with sales in August hitting an annual rate that if substantiated can take them back over 16 million and that is a rate that was last hit before the economic crisis and 80% higher than 2009 when GM and Chrysler went into bankruptcy. The opposite is happening in Europe being in its sixth year slump now and with a weak economy, high petroleum prices and an aging