BUS 660 Rick Hesterberg and Toyota Motor Manufacturing

Name: BUS 660 Rick Hesterberg and Toyota Motor Manufacturing
Brand: Grand Canyon University
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Author: Gabriel Adams

Case study on Toyota�s manufacturing strategies.

Gabriel Adams

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Running head: RICK HESTERBERG OF TOYOTA 1
Rick Hesterberg and Toyota Motor Manufacturing
Jackie Olney
BUS 660
Dr. Beth Langevin
May 5, 2014
Analyze Rick Hesterberg's leadership style at Toyota Motor Manufacturing in Georgetown,
Kentucky. How does his leadership approach contribute to the company's success, particularly
during challenging situations such as the vehicle recall crisis? Discuss the impact of his
transformational, bureaucratic, and charismatic leadership styles on employee morale, public
relations, and community engagement. Additionally, consider how Hesterberg balances
communication and change management within the organization. Provide recommendations for
enhancing leadership practices at Toyota Motor Manufacturing.
Word Count Requirement: 750-1,000 words

RICK HESTERBERG OF TOYOTA 2
Toyota Motor Manufacturing
The drive through Georgetown, Kentucky is not only beautiful but it is home to a large
manufacturing facility considered a sense of pride in the Bluegrass state. Containing more than 7
million feet of floor space and about 7,000 team members the Toyota Motor Manufacturing of
Kentucky (TMMK) plant is the largest Japanese car plant outside of Japan. The TMMK plant
produces approximately 2,000 vehicles every day or 2 cars every 55 seconds. To keep the plant
running at an optimal level it takes many leaders and no two are alike. TMMK contains leaders
to build each separate aspect of the car from the assembly line, inventory control, administrative
personnel, and communications. Communications is responsible for ensuring the TMMK name
and product are properly represented and reported in print and media (R. Hesterberg, personal
communication, May 1, 2014).
Rick Hesterberg has been the manager for external affairs for Kentucky’s Toyota plant
for many years. He will only say that he joined the Toyota team after graduating from college
with a BA in journalism from Morehead University and that it is a rewarding and invigorating
career. Hesterberg’s duties are very diverse and include working proactively with public relation
or affair departments, media outlets, government entities, some stakeholders. He is an advocate
for the community and ensures team members and stakeholders are involved. An essential part of
his responsibilities is to research, forecast and evaluate public policy on Toyota using all the
resources available, including political, public, or personal contacts (R. Hesterberg, personal
communication, May 1, 2014).
Leadership style
As the front person for Toyota in Kentucky, Hesterberg must have high integrity, be
humble, and self-aware. This skill set makes him a transformational leader. The transactional

RICK HESTERBERG OF TOYOTA 3
leader is typically an effective leader in the business sector because of the ability to inspire
others, expectation of the best of others, and his or her accountability. In fact Hesterberg could
be the prime example of a transformation leader because of his ability to communicate, solve
problems, get results, show compassion for the community, and share the vision of TMMK with
the state and world (Spinosa, Glennon, & Sota, 2008).
Communication
It is very important to TMMK that they set goals to achieve an ultimate agenda. The first
thing top management does is develop a strategy to ensure there are open lines of
communication. The communication strategy is not only for top management but also includes
supervisors, technical and production employees who will be affected by the changes. When
changes are in the works, communication between management and employee is done regularly
to make sure targets dates are effectively set. Change must be given to employees at the onset to
help each of them focus on why, what, and how. Developing a message is important in the
beginning to make sure TMMK’s vision is captured in the correct manner. Behavior goals for
each group of employees are enacted like the use of company mottos and statements, which are
also used as encouragement tools (R. Hesterberg, personal communication, May 1, 2014).
Change requires communication, not only for stockholders and upper management but an
entire organization. Functional and technical excellence should be demonstrated by employees.
Toyota expects employees to embrace the “Toyota Way” and continually improve themselves
through a set of principles Toyota has enacted. The 14 principles are organized into four broader
categories: long-term philosophy, the right results will be produced by the right process,
developing the people will add value to the organization, and organizational learning is done
through continuously solving root problems (Fujio, 2001).

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Grand Canyon University

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Business Management

BUS 660 Rick Hesterberg and Toyota Motor Manufacturing

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