Toyota in Valenciennes, France: Cultural Communication and the Fate of the Yaris
Claude Boulle, former Ministry of Labor official and current Vice President of
Administration at the Toyota Onnaing production facility, quietly sat at his desk among a
sea of executives in a collective, open work space. Despite having worked at Toyota's
Onnaing automotive factory in the suburbs of Valenciennes, France for several years,
Boulle felt uncomfortable at his desk; he still was not used to the Japanese style of shared
working space. He missed his private office. Sitting among the clamor and din of a half
dozen executives, Boulle began to daydream. The first Yaris, the company's most
popular and successful model, rolled off production floors less than three years ago.
Today, his facility produced upwards of 200,000 cars a year.
Restless, he stood up and headed out to the corporate cafeteria for a late breakfast.
Along the way, he passed several young French employees clad in blue and white jackets
emblazoned with the company's logo: dual, intersecting ovals that formed a sleek and
modern T.' Below the logo, the jackets were personalized with the employees' first
names. In the cafeteria, Boulle dined with a number of floor workers having just returned
from morning exercises. He hadn't thought it possible
Toyota had managed to construct a world class, state-ofthe-art production
facility capable of producing 16,500 units a month utilizing the Toyota Way1 , a
comprehensive philosophy composed of 14 management principles for successful
automotive manufacturing. Given that Toyota established the Valenciennes plant just a
few years ago, Boulle was skeptical that a Japanese corporate environment and
management style was applicable in a French environment. He had good reason
the
cultures were so different.
Mixed feelings still existed on the work floor and in the
executive office, but the Japanese prepared well before arriving. Corporate offices in
Tokyo had researched long ago probable French reaction to the Toyota Way.2 Having
sent executives to live and study in France, as well as in French Canada, the firm felt
ready to select a site. Today, Toyota Onnaing still was not free from cultural
misunderstanding, but the Yaris retained its market share in Europe.
Boulle wondered, though, how long success would last, and if Toyota could
weather a longer storm. He returned to his desk, collected his employee evaluation sheets,
and prepared for a board meeting with plant President Hiroaki Watanabe and CGT, a
French labor union. One week earlier, several recently fired employees had filed a formal
complaint against management, charging harassment on the work floor3. Toyota claimed
that the workers were belligerently absent and routinely arrived for their shift up to thirty
“We run to grab the wheeled carts...We run past each other and if we say something, we say it as we keep moving” (McClelland 400). A practically inhuman speed is expected from the workers, forcing them to rush from place to place. They do not have time to spare for walking. They are even deprived of socialization, which is essential to human satisfaction, due to a lack of time. There is not a moment of peace as long as they are clocked-in, no matter how hard or long they work. Enjoyment is impossible, and no effort is made to reduce the highly stressful environment of the workers. The company shows no concern for its workers’ mental well being.
against their employers, employees were able to go on strike and prove a point. Some
Triandis, H. C. (1963). Factors affecting employee selection in two cultures. Journal of Applied Psychology, 47, 89-96.
B lunch consists of people with different cultures, personalities, and grade levels. The students sit with people who they believe share the same interests,
Working seven days a week for about eight hours made the workers fatigue. Having .75 cents on average an hour was not worth the working based on the harsh w...
There were also few instances where the workers demonstrated violent behavior at the work place. This is due to improper background checks of the temporary workers that were hired to meet the high demand. Such instances may cause bad reputation to the company that can hurt company’s
Friendships in these cultures tend to be strong and are expected to last a lifetime. Work-related relationships are most of the times formal and strictly professional.
Different cultures have their own values which may differ from each other that workers need to be aware of in order to better understand and facilitate the needs of others. For example in Aboriginal and Torres Strait
have had in the past. Because they do not have the power they once held, many workers are
Another thing that was aspired by Route 66 is the idea of car culture. Muscle cars, drag racing, and motor shows, were all part of this culture. Illegal drag races was a growing problem in the early 1950’s when teenages woruld speed down a quarter mile to see who was faster. Popularized by the book Hot Rod, by Gregor Felson in 1950, the phenomenon of “hot-rodding” was seen like a widespread form of youth rebellion. This is where promoters built legal drag- racing strips, where people could race their cars down the speedway without other cars interfering and watching cars with precautionary measure to prevent injury if an accident was to occur. Places like the Route 66 Raceway in Elwood, Illinois, is an example of inspired car culture business.
By protesting and fighting for their rights and beliefs in the fair treatment of acceptable wages it has showcased the overworked and treatment of the workers while they were at their occupations.
In 2010, automaker Toyota was faced with one of the biggest threats to its brand, the safety of its vehicles. Toyota failed miserably in its response to the safety issues due to a few major management issues.
Imachukwu, O. T. (2014). Exploring perspectives of cultural differences in the workplace. (Order No. 3612897, Walden University). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 150. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1509124938?accountid=38569. (1509124938).
Understanding how organizational and national cultures relate, analyzing and identifying cultural similarities and differences, and addressing potential cultural conflict is crucial to the pursuit of cross-cultural harmony within an organizational environment. Cross-cultural harmony is essential to prevent misunderstandings, disagreements, and other types of conflict in the workplace. Organizational culture is highly impacted by national cultures, incompatibilities will not only result in an increased complexity of organizational management, but may also result in actions and behaviors contradictive to the organization’s mission and goals.
? Objection to the "speed up" conditions that placed undue pressures on employees to perform at faster levels, some managers exploited both workers and customers.