Org Week 10 DQR
Post your responses to posts written by at least two of your peers. Address the following in your responses:
? In what way(s) do you agree or disagree with their assessments of the impact of their chosen aspects of the Fourth IR on their strategic plans?
? In what way(s) do you agree or disagree with their assessments of the impact of their chosen aspects of the Fourth IR on their companies?
? How might other aspects of the Fourth IR impact their strategic plans, their companies, or both?
Marina Gray
I chose the United Parcel Services or UPS as we all commonly know it as.? UPS is one of the largest logistics companies in the world, specializing in transportations and services for shipping all over the world, Ups has its headquarters located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, as one of the largest hubs for logistics in the country.
Of the Fourth IR aspects, UPS could greatly benefit from the robotics aspect to help work through their goals.? With the ever need to reduce costs and times in warehouses, UPS is incorporating automatic warehouses to help maximize space without the need of expanding for room.? Using a system called the automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS), a grid of storage bins located on the warehouse floor where robots find the respective bins of products that is then transported throughout the grid system to stations throughout.? This ASRS system was to maximize the capacity warehouses without adding strain to employees with the use of robots to do the heavy lifting and moving products through the warehouse (United Parcel Service of America, Inc., 2021).
With the robotics Fourth IR, the loss of jobs will happen as manual labor to complete tasks will start to be replaced by automated systems that cuts operating times in half and eliminates the needs for people to manually move products around.? The second danger that is contributed with robotics is the limitations of dealing with technology in modern terms.? To be able to use robotics, the never-ending need for a constant power supply and the resources and materials needed to create a power sufficient supply to run electronics is already on limited.? Having state-of-the-art equipment can only be limited to what is currently available on the market and with technology ever changing, robotics will not hold to the test of time and will constantly have to be replaced with something better and more efficient.
References
United Parcel Service of America, Inc. (2021, April 6).?A reimagined warehouse: people, robots, and sustainable too!?Retrieved from UPS: https://about.ups.com/sg/en/our-stories/innovation-driven/a-reimagined-warehouse–people–robots–and-sustainable-too-.html
Response ?
Erin Perry
Toyota Motor Company designs and manufactures passenger cars, trucks, and vehicle accessories. The company has been doing business in this sector since its founding in 1937, and its headquarters are located in Toyota, Japan (?Toyota Motor Corp,? 2021).?While Toyota?s primary product is automobiles and engines, a significant portion of their revenue is also put back into other ?services,? such as community development, traffic safety initiatives and education, and environmental protection measures (Toyota Motor Corporation, 2021, p. 22). In fact, over $150 million annually is spent on these initiatives that support Toyota?s Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs (Toyota Motor Corporation, 2021, p. 22).?However, the bulk of Toyota?s product is its automobile production, with over 11 million vehicles produced since its founding (Toyota Industries Corporation, 2021).
Artificial Intelligence is the most pressing innovation challenge Toyota will face in the coming years. The push to develop green technology and self-driving vehicles will see the entrance of non-vehicles into the market, such as Google and Apple. The race to remain the leading car manufacturer by staying ahead of the green technology innovation curve will pose a serious threat, and will play a large part in the company’s strategic plan. The decision to ally or build could be the deciding factor in holding their lead in the market. At this stage, the biggest risk posed by the Fourth IR is exactly that.?
Although Toyota is not keen to outsource or form partnerships for the most part, a key alliance that can be nurtured for the company?s benefit is the recent alliance with Subaru to develop next-generation all-wheel-drive technology. Just before the start of the pandemic, in September 2019, Toyota entered into this partnership as a way to corner the market alongside its strongest competitor in this market. By continuing to work with Subaru through a culture of mutual innovation and idea-sharing, as well as joint share-holding interest in each other?s companies, both Toyota and Subaru can benefit. The mission of this alliance is to build ?ever-better cars beyond that achieved thus far by Toyota and Subaru? and to ?survive this once-in-a-century period of profound transformation? (?Toyota and Subaru Agree,? 2019). However, a risk here is that the two companies will need to remain independent while also nurturing an alliance; dips in the market share of either company could sway the balance and damage the reputation of both.?
Toyota is poised to enter a new vehicle that, they hope, will rival the introduction of the Prius, should it take off as expected. However, if the technology created to launch the new NX electric vehicle does not perform or provide a satisfactory interface to the level that tech giants such as Apple and Google provide when they enter the market, customer loyalty may begin to wane. Toyota has enjoyed nearly 100 years of being top of their game; this shift in players and the needs to seek alliances that used to be considered unorthodox may just be the game-changer that threatens or saves their seat.
References
Toyota Industries Corporation. (2021). Vehicles.?https://www.toyota-industries.com/products/automobile/car/index.html
Toyota and Subaru agree on new business and capital alliance. (September 27, 2019). Toyota.?https://global.toyota/en/newsroom/corporate/29916271.html
Toyota Motor Corporation. (October, 2021). Sustainability data book. [PDF].?https://global.toyota/pages/global_toyota/sustainability/report/sdb/sdb21_en.pdf
Response
