Has Toyota effectively managed public relations in the U.S Who should accountable for this activity How could Toyotas crisis management be improvedWhat should Akio Toyoda do now to restore Toyotas reputation and position Toyota for sustainable co - Essay Example

When Akio Toyoda came to be president of the Toyota Motors in 2009, the company itself was really from a disastrous public relations fiasco with regards to the failure of the braking system in several hundred of its cars. This failure caused a rapid recall and position Toyota on the defensive with regards to continuing to achieve sales and gain consumer confidence within a market that was already jarring from the impacts of a global recession. The following brief analysis will seek to engage the reader with an understanding of how Toyota could have improved upon its crisis management and how the current president must seek to continue to restore the reputation that Toyota has long enjoyed; one of quality, reliability, and safety (Marksbury, 2012).

Firstly, with respect to how Toyota couldn’t handle the situation in a more effective manner, it must be understood that the overall speed in which Toyota address the break failure issue was not adequate. Although the firm was necessarily attempting to ameliorate the potential for loss that it faced, the issue proved to be larger than was already evidenced (Rechtin, 2013). Hoping that these were merely a few isolated incidents, Toyota chose to remain on the sidelines and merely offer support for the issues for any concern consumer (Fan et al., 2013). However, this step in and of itself was not sufficient to the needs of the market and/or the needs of the consumer.

Ultimately, the slow response, allowed for Toyota to lose a great deal of credibility and trust with regards to the consumer’s estimation of the brand itself (Simon et al., 2010). However, to its credit, the Toyota firm realized that a total and complete recall of the defective vehicles was the only mechanism through which the firm could leverage a degree of trust once again within the consumer base (Cusumano, 2011). As this was done and the issue rapidly taking care of, Toyota and then set about to rebuild a positive image and seek to repair much of the damage that has been wrought as a result of this public relations fiasco (Briddle, 2012).

Currently, it would be the recommendation of this author that the president of Toyota focus upon the safety and quality of each and every vehicle; all while representing this to the consumer via advertisements and marketing procedures. Only through such a process can the consumer once again be assured that Toyota considers any and all threats to the safety of their automobile as tantamount to a failure in their business model and approach. However, it must be noted that such an approach is in and of itself not a cheap venture (Taneja et al., 2012). Accordingly, Toyota will need to leverage a high level of assets and funding as a means of repositioning the brand to the consumer.

Only through such a sustained effort can individuals within the market step away from their preconceived notions and memories concerning the public relations fiasco and safety issues that had formerly been associated with the auto manufacturer. References Cusumano, MA 2011, Technology Strategy and Management Reflections on the Toyota Debacle, Communications Of The ACM, 54, 1, pp. 33-35, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013. Briddle, A 2012, Company Spotlight: Toyota Motor Corporation Marketwatch: Automotive, 12, 12, pp.

9-19, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013. Fan, D, Geddes, D, & Flory, F 2013, The Toyota Recall Crisis: Media Impact on Toyotas Corporate Brand Reputation, Corporate Reputation Review, 16, 2, pp. 99-117, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013. Marksberry, P 2012, Investigating |!|#34;The Way|!|#34; for Toyota suppliersA quantitative outlook on Toyota|!|#39;s replicating efforts for supplier development, Benchmarking: An International Journal, 19, 2, pp.

277-298, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013. Rechtin, M 2013, Small cars big part of Toyota plans, Automotive News, 87, 6579, pp. 16-20, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013. SIMON, W, BLOS, M, HUI MING, W, & YI-LI, C 2010, CAN THE TOYOTA WAY OVERCOME THE RECENT TOYOTA SETBACK? - A STUDY BASED ON THE THEORY OF CONSTRAINTS, Journal Of Advanced Manufacturing Systems, 9, 2, pp. 145-156, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013.

Taneja, S, Pryor, M, & Sewell, S 2012, TOYOTA RECALLS: A STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP PERSPECTIVE, International Journal Of Business & Public Administration, 9, 2, pp. 125-140, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 25 October 2013.