Honda International Case Study

Case Presentation 1.1

Group 4Matthew Cruz, Brooke Feery,

Jacob Hostetler, Daniela Nicula, Manh Duc Tran

HONDA

Who is Honda?Honda Motor Company, Ltd is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.

Honda at a Glance

Forbes Lists#59 Global 500#19 Most Powerful Brands#44 in Sales#77 in Profit#178 in Assets#93 in Market value

Is Honda a MNE? YES!

• Industry: Automotive• Founded: 1948• Country: Japan• CEO: Takanobu Ito• Website: world.honda.com• Employees: 179,000 • 2012 Sales: $96.7 trillion• Headquarters: Minato,

Tokyo, Japan

The Honda PortfolioSubsidiaries:• Many subsidiaries are companies that manufacture specific components

(i.e. Honda Lock Manufacturing).• These companies manufacture transmission parts, motorcycle exhaust

components, electronic safety systems, solar cells, brake discs, etc.

Affiliates:• Multiple companies’ supply components go into Honda products (i.e.

Keihin Corporation, Masuda Manufacturing).• These companies make automobile body parts, fuel systems, air

conditioning systems, injection-molded plastic parts, etc.• Most affiliates and subsidiaries are Japanese (single diamond).• For example, Honda is starting to install Krell stereo systems on Acura

vehicles.

Total Revenue(by Region)

18.9%

43.3%6.4%

18.1%

12.3% Japan

North Amer-ica

Europe

Asia

Other

Honda is Bi-Regional (37% Asia, 43% North America)

Case Study Questions1. What was Honda's distinct resource base that provided internationally

transferable FSAs?2. Which value-added activities in which foreign locations permitted Honda

to exploit and augment to the fullest its distinct resource base?3. What were the expected costs and difficulties Honda faced when

transferring this distinct resource base?4. What specific resource recombination was required so as to make the

proposed international value-added activities successful?5. Did Honda have the required resource recombination capability in-

house?6. What were the costs and benefits of using complementary resources of

external actors to fill resource gaps?7. What were the main bounded rationality and bounded reliability

problems Honda faced when extending the geographic scope of the firm's activities the changed linkages with outside stakeholders and the changes in its internal functioning?

Honda and the Four DistancesCultural

• Honda hired American workers for their passion, not for their knowledge of motorcycle manufacturing.

• Honda sent American workers to Japan to learn about Honda’s manufacturing processes, and sent some Japanese workers to the US to instill Honda’s philosophy into the plant.

Administrative• US government passed the Clean Air Act imposing stricter

requirements on tailpipe emissions.• Honda feared that if demand rose for their fuel efficient cars,

the US would impose export restrictions.

Honda and the Four DistancesGeographic

• Honda had to search for a long time before finding the proper place to being manufacturing – Marysville, Ohio.

• Only a few suppliers agreed to follow Honda and build their own plants in the US.

Economic• The rising price of the yen against the dollar in the 1970s made

continued exporting problematic.• The Oil Crisis of 1973 caused the price of Honda’s exports to increase

while causing consumer demand for more fuel-efficient cars to increase as well.

Honda’s approach to bridging the Four Distances in the 1970s classifies it as an International Projector.

International Expansion• Honda is striving to be the world's leader in

environmental and energy technologies through its product development, production, and other activities.

• By 2014 North American capacity will hit 1.92 million vehicles annually.

• The automaker is targeting a stronger position in mini-vehicle and compact vehicle segments to reinforce business operations in Japan.

• Honda plans to terminate 800 jobs at its South Marston plant in England due to sagging demand for its vehicles in Europe.

Honda’s Performance as a MNE

Degree of MultinationalityLicensing – Honda licenses its technology to other companies in different countries (i.e. India) and engages in international joint ventures.Export – Honda is a net exporter, exporting more American–built vehicles than it imports from Japan. Honda exports 11 models accounting for over 100,000 units shipped to more than 40 countries.Local Packaging / Assembly – Honda has 57 factories worldwide, 49 outside of Japan and 12 plants in North America .FDI – Honda establishes relationships with suppliers in host countries.

Firm Specific Advantages

Tangible Resources• 57 factories in all regions• 8 R&D facilities worldwide• Many additional facilities

Human Resources• Honda’s management style• Honda selected employees based on the passion for

their work rather than their experience • Japanese/American employees visited one another’s

countries

Firm Specific Advantages (cont’d)

Intangible Resources• Manufacturing process• Brand reputation: practical, reliable, high-quality products• Immense experience with internal combustion engines• Partnerships with many affiliates who manufacture parts for

motorcycles, cars, and other products• More than 17,600 patents in Japan and 25,300 patents

abroad as well as 29,400 patents pending worldwide.• Supply chain management • Green initiatives such as reducing PVC use and fuel efficient

car and motorcycle engines

Firm Specific Advantages (cont’d)

Subsidiary Specific Advantages• Subsidiary HAM in case study had connections to

Ford that Honda was able to leverage• Over 25,000 patents in foreign markets• Decentralized manufacturing allowed Honda to

overcome the Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011 that disrupted Japanese manufacturing

Country Specific Advantages

• The 1970 Clean Air Act passed by US Congress opened up an opportunity for Honda to bring fuel efficient cars into America.

• European Union fuel costs are high and environmental restrictions are very severe on products with internal combustion engines.

The mix of strong CSAs and strong FSAs places Honda in the 3rd Quadrant of the FSA-CSA Matrix

Competitive AdvantageSingle Diamond

Foreign Direct Investment

Efficiency-seeking:Honda has mainly taken advantage of low-wage countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and India

Market-seeking: Honda Motor of Japan is going to expand its operations into India

Strategic Asset -seeking: 8 R&D facilities worldwide

Recombination Patterns

Type III• Internationally transferrable FSAs are developed at home

but in order to exploit them in host countries, location-bound knowledge must be added.

• Honda recombined its FSAs such as its manufacturing process to better cater to international consumers.

• Honda manufactures automobiles targeted specifically towards the host country’s consumers.

• Honda’s extensive knowledge and experience with internal combustion engines is easily applied to many diverse markets.

Recombination Patterns

Type VIII• Honda also features characteristics of this pattern.• Affiliates of the MNE located in various countries

develop FSAs together, contributing knowledge upstream and downstream.

• Honda R&D and other facilities worldwide cooperate to create new technologies that can be applied to innovative products in multiple host countries.

Summary• Bi-Regional MNE (NAFTA

and Asia)• Activity Level: Licensing,

Export, Assembly, FDI • International

Performance: Stage 3• Revenues are declining• MNE Archetype:

International Projector

• FSAs are Primarily Transferrable

• Single Diamond Framework

• FSA-CSA Matrix: Quadrant 3

• FDI Types: Market, Efficiency, & Strategic Asset Seeking

• Recombination Patterns: 3 & 8

Works Cited• http://world.honda.com/group/Manufacturing/index.html• http://world.honda.com/group/manufacturing-facilities• http://

www.consumerreports.org/content/cro/en/cars/best-car-brands-consumer-perception-consumer-reports.html

• http://www.interbrand.com/en/best-global-brands/2012/Best-Global-Brands-2012-Brand-View.aspx

• http://www.wikinvest.com/stock/Honda_Motor_Company_(HMC)/Patents_Licenses

• http://world.honda.com/investors/library/annual_report/2012/honda2012ar-Cover-03.pdf