_________________________________________________________________________________ Toyota Motor Corporation
“ We ’ re then dealing with the additional challenges of systemic issues ,” Mike continues . “ Firstly , the short supply of labor was already becoming a problem , but the pandemic really pushed it to the forefront . There ’ s a growing age gap in the general workforce , with many of our longstanding team members reaching retirement and a lack of young people coming through the ranks . Combined with surging demand and rising inflation , many organizations are experiencing continued instability across supply and transportation bases .”
Michael adds : “ The other difficulty lies with the evolution of consumer demand and expectations over the last ten years , which has been fueled by internet technology and the likes of next-day delivery , but again , the pandemic heightened the demand for convenience . Staying ahead of ever-evolving customer expectations for speed and convenience in a fastchanging market is one of our biggest focus areas today .
Toyota is a very supplierfocused company that encourages strong working relationships and was founded upon the principle of respect for humanity
“ We ’ ve always put customers at the center of everything we do , but Mike set a vision coming out of the pandemic to pay close attention to changing demands and expectations ,” Michael continues . “ We lean on our close relationships with suppliers to navigate severe availability and delivery issues , particularly in developing strategies that help us execute on time , any place delivery . We leverage these relationships to better understand how we , as a supply chain organization , can better satisfy our customers .”
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