Great Leadership & The Auto Industry

Ah yes, I know this is a touchy subject, but I'm going to focus on the positive.

It's a common misconception that as large companies get larger, they loose touch with reality and eventually reach a level where innovation and great leadership is virtually impossible.

Toyota is an excellent example of an enormous company showing great leadership in the midst of some tough times.

They have several plants here in the United States; some have slowed production and some have suspended production.

However, Toyota has yet to layoff a single worker.

Instead of sending workers home jobless, Toyota has decided to invest deeply in employee development.

Their employees have been going through training programs, seminars about diversity, ethics, and more.

Toyota has also paid their employees to help build homes and plant trees for Habitat for Humanity.

It is truly amazing to see such a large company sticking to its guns.

When you think about it, it may even make economic sense! When we emerge from this recession, Toyota will be ready with extremely skilled and motivated workers.

The workers will be motivated because their employer has shown an unwavering commitment to it's employees.

They also won't be incurring the cost of massive hiring and training.

I am very interested to see how the numbers turn out. Will they have saved money in the long run?

On another note, think about where we would be with the advancement of fuel efficient cars if other automakers hadn't watched Toyota's success with the Prius?

All in all, I think it's cool to see any size company realize what their most important asset is - their people.