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Ed Morrison · BFD Learning Moments: Links
October 19th, 2008
Solutions for China yield Mich. jobs Great Cities Speakers Series Presents Doug Farr Discussing “Sustainable Urbanism” Dallas-Fort Worth stepping up medical technology firms Those at the Collaborative Innovation Summit hear stories of finding new directions Purdue TAP Launches Green and Health Workforce Programs ‘Open Wide…’ Regionalism: economic development through collaboration, not competition
Last 5 posts by Ed Morrison
- Signing off - February 3rd, 2012
- "The current global development model is unsustainable" - February 1st, 2012
- Market opportunities for developing Chicago's green economy - January 29th, 2012
- Plain Dealer flubs its explanation for firing Tony Grossi - January 27th, 2012
- Linking and leveraging university assets to strengthen regional economies - January 27th, 2012
October 20th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Ed, let’s not confuse activity for action. Sending some ED people to China does not transform an economy. If Michigan really wants to alter its economy, it should make every white collar manager at GM, Ford, and Chrysler to apprentice at Toyota and Honda for a year.
October 20th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Jonathan:
A few points:
1. Sending economic development professionals to China is a good idea. More should be going.
I’ve been going to China since 1990. Up until about 2001, I was going three to four times a year.
So, I’ve had the good fortune of experiencing the speed with which the Chinese economy is developing. If more leaders in the United States had some sense of the dynamism of the Chinese economy, they would be less complacent with our mediocre performance in primary and secondary schools and increasing competition we face in postsecondary education.
2. Your suggestion of having every automobile executive from a domestic car company and spend time with the Japanese automaker is a good one. Sadly, my experience tells me that the US auto executives will still not fully understand the plight in which they find themselves.
In 1984, I was part of the first corporate strategy team to analyze in detail a Japanese automaker. Our clients, Ford and the UAW, asked us to complete a detailed cost study of a Mazda GLC and a Ford Escort. I spent nearly 2 weeks in Japan doing detailed cost studies of the Mazda facility in Hiroshima.
It was clear to me then, as it is clear to me now, that the Japanese automakers manufacture with a fundamentally different business model.
Their manufacturing model is more networked, leaner, and more agile. Despite outlining these differences 20 years ago, Ford and the UAW have done very little to change. (Indeed, Ford’s current chief financial officer was one of the young Ford executives on the trip.)
Your suggestion, although a good one, probably comes too late.
October 21st, 2008 at 3:38 pm
From today’s NYT:
Kerkorian Sells Part of His Ford Stake