Blue Ocean Strategy

Blue Ocean Strategy

Our MEM class had an amazing opportunity of hearing a Guest lecture which I would define as one of the most engaging, influential talk I have ever listened in my life. I am talking about the lecture from Keith Turnbull on Toyota Production System (TPS). He has been an Alcoa executive and has successfully learned TPS and implemented it back in Alcoa. His knowledge, belief and passion moved him to write a book on TPS. Words and pages of his book made him highly attached to TPS and so even after his retirement he decided to try his knowledge of TPS in the book to some other organization. For past three years he have successfully implemented TPS to BIG Eagle, Doughnut company on its various products and the effort is now to complete integrate TPS into Big Eagle Bakery system.

Though I have already read a book on TPS, it was highly insightful more so after actually studying manufacturing process and visiting different manufacturing facilities in North East Ohio. I would not write much about TPS as it would be a cliché as most of the readers have already listened to a fine speaker. For readers other then MEM class, TPS is a philosophy, a system to bring about a continuous positive change in your organization (though you can apply TPS in your life as well) by involving your own people in a much more manner. It involves minimizing waste, localizing the problem and rectifying it.

To most people, if its asked to find out the trade off that exist in Customer, People, Cost, Quality and Time; most replies would be numerous like if Quality is to increase, cost would go up and more like that. This was the same question asked by Keith to us and was not surprised that his motive was to sensitize our minds to an all together new possibility; that all those attributes are actually no trade offs but together they are one attribute and its possible to improve it as a whole.

I relate the whole Toyota Production System with an innovative thinking called as “Blue Ocean Strategy” which focuses on organizational strategy that aims to capture untapped opportunities for business with innovative thinking towards your own services and products to tap new growth opportunities in mind rather than traditional iterative cost cutting technique and optimization to same product, known as “Red Ocean Strategy”.

Toyota when in late 50’s Toyota were in shambles, they decided to adopt a new thinking towards manufacturing and not just copying the idea taken by others in the industry. They challenged what is assumed that cost is inversely related to your people and quality of final product resulting in them adopting a new and all together a “Blue Ocean Strategy” that focused on cost cutting with high people and customer satisfaction and high quality and in low time.

Entrepreneurship is another example of “Blue Ocean Strategy”, where innovator views customer requirements effectively and thus is able to provide product/service differently and profitably then others in the competition. Its essential for every business to remain profitable and solvent, that they look out for their constantly evolving “Blue Ocean Strategy”.