Strategic Management at General Motors Paper Example

Introduction

General Motors is my target company to work for after the MBA and my wish is to become one of their best employees in advancing their strategic management. The American multinational company has been in operation for many years and it uses its experiences to perform better than the competitors and to meet the diverse needs of the consumers. The company has many products and operates in many countries. The motor industry is dynamic and there are always changes in the tastes and preferences of the consumers. The company has many employees and they have different skills. The strategic management in the company is used to improve the operations management and to increase the efficiency of the company. It also helps to improve its competitiveness in the market and to meet the goals it has set. The motivation and innovation strategy of the company and the ethics and corporate social responsibility are some of the tools used to achieve the strategic goals. The analysis below shows the way these tools are used to achieve the final goals.

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Major Components of the Strategic Management

The strategic management process in General Motors is a combination of several components. The recession of 2008 to 2009 affected the motor industry and the restoration process has been in progress ever since (Goolsbee & Krueger, 2015). The company has strategic management plans that are geared towards this restoration too and achieving a higher performance than the other key players in the industry. The first one is the design of the goods and services. The company uses strategic management strategies to ensure that their products and services are designed according to the needs of the consumers and that all quality standards are maintained. The second component is quality management and this te operations management ensures that the international quality standards are met as well as the specific requirements of the motor industry. According to Sabbagha, Ab Rahman, Ismail, and Hussain (2016), quality management improves the satisfaction of car users and the product development of the manufacturers. Therefore, General Motors ensures the quality of their products is paramount. The other component is location and layout strategy. The company ensures that the plants are located close to the resources and all robotics are working without failure. The last components are the supply chain and human resources management and these involve ensuring the supply chain is managed effectively and the human resources are fit and trained to perform their duties. The use of ergonomics is used to study the effectiveness of human resources in achieving the goals of the company (Zare, Croq, HosseinArabi, Brunet & Roquelaure, 2016). The company uses the above components to ensure the strategic management process gives the best results.

Value Creation

The above component works together to ensure that General Motors achieves its high-value targets. For example, the quality management component acts as the guide towards the quality of the products and services and this helps to manage the variations that may arise. The component on supply chain management helps the company to get high-value material for use in the production process. When a company has effective supply chain management, it increases its efficiency and reduces the possibility of using inferior materials in its production (Touboulic & Walker, 2015). It also increases the sustainability of the manufacturing process of the company (Rajeev, Pati, Padhi & Govindan, 2017). The other layout and location strategy helps the company to manage its inventory, reduce wastes and manage its costs. The strategic management keeps the company in the right track and prevents deviations.

Mission, Vision and People Strategies

The company's mission is to become a leader in sales and market processes in the auto industry and to have a large market share in the global market. The company is therefore dedicated to making sure that they produce high-quality goods and services and to make sure that their employees and business partners enjoy the success and the stockholders get a higher value for their investments. The vision of the company is to provide high-quality goods and services at a low cost. The motivational strategies in the company include an employee of the month, staff value awards and encouraging all employees to become team members. The innovation strategy of the company involves encouraging employees to express their innovative ideas and rewarding them for it. The company also acknowledges that the human capital or people are an important part of the company and the people strategy includes satisfaction of the employees and consumers. The company uses the above strategies to achieve its targets and increase its efficiency.

Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

Ethics and corporate social responsibility are important aspects of all companies. In strategic management, the two are used to guide the decision-making process and the planning of how the strategic goals are to be achieved. The strategic plan is developed in line with the organizational structure, the ethics and social responsibilities of the company. For example, in supply chain management, the management is expected to follow the ethical and social responsibilities in making choices and decisions (Feng, Zhu & Lai, 2017). The mission and vision of General Motors are in line with the ethics and social responsibilities because they are geared towards the improved performance of the company and increased quality. In conclusion, the strategic management in General Motors is successful and it guides the company in making decisions that lead to its success.

References

Feng, Y., Zhu, Q., & Lai, K. H. (2017). Corporate social responsibility for supply chain management: A literature review and bibliometric analysis. Journal of Cleaner Production, 158, 296-307.

Goolsbee, A. D., & Krueger, A. B. (2015). A retrospective look at rescuing and restructuring general motors and Chrysler. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 29(2), 3-24.

Rajeev, A., Pati, R. K., Padhi, S. S., & Govindan, K. (2017). Evolution of sustainability in supply chain management: A literature review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 162, 299-314.

Sabbagha, O., Ab Rahman, M. N., Ismail, W. R., & Hussain, W. M. H. W. (2016). Impact of quality management systems and after-sales key performance indicators on automotive industry: A literature review. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 224, 68-75.

Touboulic, A., & Walker, H. (2015). Theories in sustainable supply chain management: a structured literature review. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 45(1/2), 16-42.

Zare, M., Croq, M., HosseinArabi, F., Brunet, R., & Roquelaure, Y. (2016). Does ergonomics improve product quality and reduce costs? A review article. Human Factors and Ergonomics in Manufacturing & Service Industries, 26(2), 205-223.