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Evidence exists today which indicates that our present motor carrier regulatory system, rather than "protect the public interest", might actually inhibit the efficient provision of transportation services to the economy. Accepting such a view of the regulated motor transport market as valid, this thesis could serve as a model from which legislators might begin to re-write our motor carrier act. It is assumed throughout this work that such an undertaking is well overdue. The possible use of this thesis for such a purpose is its primary justification for existence. In order to serve as a basis for such a legislative revision, the model and recommendations contained herein should be designed to maximize the potential benefits which might accrue to the industry and the shipping public. The philosophical bias flowing throughout this work is the conviction that this maximization of benefits could best be realized through increased competition among firms, coupled with the minimization, through reduced regulation, of any economic threats to the stability of the national transportation system. Thus, the attempt is made in the model to be presented to provide for an increased level of industry competition while retaining those essential elements of regulation upon which the national transportation policy was originally based. The approach taken in this work is one of review, description, analysis, model-building and commentary. The current regulatory issues of concern to the motor transportation industry are reviewed in chapter 2. The market structure is described in chapter 3, followed by an analysis of price and output determination in chapter 4. The framework for a new approach to price determination in this industry is developed in chapters 5 and 6. The model presented is intended to replace many of the regulatory procedures in use today. Chapter 7 contains comments on the relevance to the industry of the model constructed in chapters 5 and 6, to include a discussion of its probable impact upon several of the most perplexing problems facing regulators today. The appendix was added to enhance the reader' s und er-st.and.i.ng of the extent to which present-day regulated motor transport rate structures fail to represent rational and economically justifiable charges for services rendered. This thesis will not continue in the modern trend of regulatory literature--that is, resorting to emotionalism and allegations aimed at removing regulation from the transport industry (16). Nor is its purpose to justify the oontinued existence of the Interstate Commerce Commission. Rather, the admittedly ambitious goal of this work is to present what is felt to be a much-needed new format for regulation in this field--one based upon the ideals of economic theory, the tenets of national transportation policy, and the restraints of present-day market realities. With this goal in mind, every attempt will be made to announce assumptions, identify opinions and employ rigid economic analysis whenever possible.

Diversity and Teamwork are currently some of the trendiest human resources strategies of boosting team performance and ultimately, organizational performance. This study analyzes the impact of gender, racial, age and employment status diversity on teamwork, and is one of the first studies on diversity and teamwork in the mature phase of Japanese transplants. The theoretical framework includes elements of the symbolic interactionist theory, Kanter.s theory on tokenism, revised contact hypothesis and perspectives on cultural diversity (Ely and Thomas, 2001). The data were collected from interviews with 87 workers from 16 production teams working on the assembly line at a top Japanese auto transplant in US, as well as from observation, analysis of corporate literature and the annual opinion survey. Furthermore, intermediary variables like team climate or team spirit have been found to mediate the relationships between diversity and team performance. Gender mixed teams reported a more enjoyable and pleasant experience in teams, whereas the male teams exposed more rivalry and competition and the female teams had more interpersonal conflicts. Similarly, the racially diverse teams have more fun and more interesting things to discuss at work, which alleviates the boredom caused by the routine of the assembly-line. Age-balanced teams also have optimal functioning in terms of productivity, quality, safety and problem-solving. Differences in employment status were found to bring inequality and different standards of performance for permanent and temporary workers, which can threaten the fundamental principles of teamwork.

This Thesis discusses issues surrounding the conduct of business in a global environment. The focus of this paper involved a major manufacturer and its business model (Deutsches Auto AG) to supply vehicles to markets in New Zealand, South Korea, Nepal, and Mongolia. Analysis was made from previously collected survey data taken in each region focused on the dealership and end-user level. Not surprisingly, it was discovered that language and cultural barriers had a significant impact on each locations operations. Observations showed that language seemed to have created a problem in every day operations in regards to management and dealership tasks. English as the lingua franca – common language of trade, was often a second or third language of the individuals conducting day to day business. Not only did everybody have their own native language but also regional dialects that affected communication, but cultural perspectives also complicated communication. This paper does not address all issues surrounding global business, but focuses its attention to personal observations and data collected to identify break downs in communications across the regions of New Zealand, South Korea, Nepal, and Mongolia. This research identified and confirmed the problems to be a lack of English skills (comprehension and speech), which is expected to be the common language between all. With this expectation, there is little emphasis given to teaching English, nor the cultural contexts and hierarchical understandings that enhances effective communication.

Over the past decade, firms in the auto industry have focused much of their attention on new product development performance. This paper reports on a follow-up study to Clark and Fujimoto's research on product development performance in the 1980s. We find that US and European firms have made significant strides in meeting Japanese product development performance. Driving this improvement have been changes in the use of suppliers, in overlapping phases of the development process, and in the type of project management system used. We also find that Korean auto makers are relatively efficient in terms of lead time and engineering productivity, although final design quality is lower. The narrowing of the competitive gap in the management of individual projects may point to product line performance as a future driver of competitive advantage. / Draft

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A number of presidents have aided the auto industry, protected it from external threats, or saved it from collapse, while presidential rhetoric about the industry is positive and consistent across political parties and over time. I conduct rhetorical analyses of the entire history of presidential speech about the industry to explain the evolution of the relationship between these two institutions. I argue that this relationship is an example of the institutionalization of speech; perfunctory campaign praise became habitual and eventually coalesced into a rhetorical legacy that entailed rhetorical and material resources and constraints for the institution of the presidency. In the case of the auto industry, presidents sought political support from the auto industry as a constituency, erased blameworthy aspects of industry history, and created an industry identity that was exceptional, which served as justification for defense of the industry and intervention during periods of economic recession, regulatory stress, foreign competition, and imminent collapse of an automaker. Such cases of institutionalized speech between the presidency and other institutions are special, but not unique; this case provides an instructive example of how speech becomes legacy over time, and of what the consequences of such legacies might include for this case and for possible others.

In today’s Chinese automotive industry, the traditional self-management logistics mode cannot fulfill higher requirement of logistics performance, more and more automotive manufacturers seek to outsource their logistics activities to third-party logistics service providers to optimize supply chain management. Milk run system is a typical example of 3PL mode in automotive industry, which can help firms minimize costs and improve logistics function simultaneously. Given the increasing importance of 3PL, many literatures are concerned about the usage of 3PL; however, few of them discussed 3PL form the perspective of China. Besides, in terms of Milk run system, seldom articles focus on this innovative logistics mode, especially in Chinese automotive industry. Therefore, in this thesis work, authors discuss 3PL from the perspective of Chinese automotive industry, especially focus on the typical 3PL mode—Milk run system, set SGM as case company, aiming at find out the factors that facilitate Chinese automotive manufacturers convert self-management mode to 3PL mode, and then discuss the benefits of professional 3PL services; in addition, authors emphasize on Milk run system and its unique benefits.  The research objectives are solved by combining literature review and empirical findings. Relevant literatures are downloaded from Internet and Library’s database. Empirical findings are gathered by interviews and questionnaires.  Through comparing literature review with findings, both external and internal factors that facilitate automotive manufacturers change logistics mode are summarized. Besides, some professional 3PL services are identified by literature review and validated by questionnaires. According to different categories of 3PL services, their benefits are discussed from two aspects: supply chain integration and core competence improvement. In addition, the benefits of Milk run system are represented by literature review and then through comparing with empirical findings, some unique benefits are summarized. In this thesis work, the main theoretical contribution is the knowledge of Milk run system, which including its features, implementation processes, and its benefits.

Denna magisteruppsats i ekonomisk historia har som syfte att utforska varför den svenska bilparken är mer bränslekrävande än genomsnittet i Europa, samt att identifiera de historiska processer som påverkat formandet av den svenska bilparken. Tidigare miljöinriktad forskning inom ekonomisk historia har fokuserat på strukturomvandling och institutionell förändring inom industri- och hushållssektorn. Denna studie utforskar den privata transportsektorn genom att studera Volvo som varit tongivande i att forma sammansättning av den svenska bilparken. Genom att studera två av Sveriges största biltidningar – Teknikens värld och Volvos egen konsumenttidning, Ratten – samt årsberättelser och hållbarhetsrapporter från Volvo, har historien om varumärket Volvo och Volvos relation till miljön utforskats.  Volvo antog ’kvalitet’ och ’säkerhet’ som kärnvärden vid starten 1927. ’Omsorg om miljön’ lades till som ett tredje kärnvärde 1972 vilket antas vara av relevans för hur Volvo byggt sin identitet. Hur Volvo tolkat ’omsorg om miljön’ i relation till sitt varumärke och hur det integrerats i företagets produktionsprocesser är utgångspunkter för uppsatsens undersökande del som sträcker sig från 1972 till 2014.  Resultatet visar på att begreppet ’miljö’ har omtolkats av Volvo och följt den samhälleliga diskursen ganska väl. Från att handla om den lokala ’arbetsmiljön’ och det som kopplas därtill, till att handla om regionala utsläpp av partiklar för att till sist innefatta ett globalt perspektiv. Resultatet visar också att Volvo på grund av höga kostnader för arbetare och en stor efterfrågan från den amerikanska marknaden drivits till att producera stora och dyra bilar som drar mycket bränsle. På grund av att Volvo inte kunnat konkurrera med höga försäljningsvolymer har man istället satsat på säkra och hållbara bilar som kunnat bringa högre vinstmarginaler.  Efter krisen på 1990-talet och ett byte av ledarskap från Pehr G. Gyllenhammar till Sören Gyll, visar resultatet att ’omsorg om miljön’ fick en mer framskjuten roll i Volvos varumärkesbyggnad. Samtidigt beslutades att Volvo skulle ta ytterligare steg mot att tillverka bilar i premiumsegmentet vilket var svårt att kombinera med miljöhänsyn vad gäller bränsleförbrukning.  Slutsatserna som dragits från denna uppsats är att Volvo efter andra världskriget lyckades skaffa sig en ’pionjärsfördel’ – pioneering advantage – genom en stark introduktion av PV 444/544-modellerna på 1940- och 1950-talet och att man sedan kunnat använda denna fördel för att omtolka svenskars preferenser att välja bränslekrävande bilar. Detta innebär att företag, om de vill, har möjlighet att styra konsumenter mot att välja bättre miljöanpassade produkter. I uppsatsen argumenteras för att avsättningsmarknader spelar stor roll för möjligheten för företag att ställa om produktionen till att leverera ’grönare’ produkter.

[pt] A proliferação da variedade de produtos é uma tendência em diferentes indústrias e se constitui em um assunto com crescente relevância para o mundo empresarial e acadêmico. A gestão dessa variedade deve buscar equilibrar os benefícios oriundos da perspectiva do marketing com os efeitos negativos provocados, em geral, pela perspectiva de operações e logística. Assim, tal gestão se torna um grande desafio para indústrias em que a variedade de produtos é elevada, como a automobilística. O presente trabalho é um estudo empírico que tem como objetivo quantificar, comparar e analisar o comportamento da variedade de produtos nos mais significativos mercados automobilísticos mundiais. Como objeto de estudo, utilizou-se automóveis de passeio fabricados pelos cinco maiores grupos de montadoras (Toyota, GM, Volkswagen, Ford e Honda) e como variáveis da variedade de produtos na indústria automobilística, considerou-se plataformas, marcas, modelos, versões, tipos de carrocerias, motorização, transmissão (power, trains), pintura e acabamento interno (paint & trim), opcionais de fábrica (factory fitted options) e acessórios de concessionárias (factory fitted options). Como resultado, verificou-se em que ponto da cadeia automotiva ocorre a proliferação de produtos e analisou-se a forma distinta com que esta variedade é gerida em diferentes mercados a jusante da cadeia e a partir da fábrica de automóveis. / [en] Product variety is a trend in many different industries and it is a subject with an increasing relevance to the business and academic arena. The management of product variety must seek to balance the benefits from the marketing perspective with the negative effects, in general, from the operations and logistics perspective, thus becoming a major challenge for industries where product variety is higher, such as the auto industry. This master`s dissertation is an empirical study that aims to quantify, compare and analyze the behavior of the variety of products in the most significant global automobile markets. Passenger cars manufactured by the five largest groups of automakers in the world (Toyota, GM, Volkswagen, Ford and Honda) and variables of product variety in the auto industry such as platforms, brands, models, versions, body type, power-trains, paint & trim, factory fitted options and dealer fitted options were used as objects of study. As a result, it was verified in which point of the supply chain the proliferation of automotive products occurs and the distinct way in which this variety is managed is analyzed in different markets downstream the chain from the car factory.