One might wonder why Toyota has been consistently delivering bad news since the initial brake recall some 6-months ago? And how about the falterig economies in Europe like Greece and Spain. And what about all the stories related to the financial crisis like Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Citi Group and others in recet years? Its almost as if there was pent up bad news once the initial story broke loose. Then once the floodgats opened, the torrent of bad news was overwhelming.
For instance, last week I was working with a client that had experienced a barrage of silent problems surfacing in recent months. To say the least, the many layers of bad news was taking its toll. On the surface, it felt as if the sky was falling. However in reality, there was a cleansing process underway. It was painful, yet necessary. An excellent story relating to this phenomenon is Toyota, who has experienced a multitude of quality related problems in 200. This past week they announced a 2nd recall in less than a month, this one for defective engine valve springs. A recent news story notes:
Toyota knew two years ago about the engine problem behind its latest Lexus recall, even changing the spring part to correct it, but did not think a recall was warranted until recently, a company official said Tuesday.
Toyota Motor Corp. started Monday a global recall over engine defects in its Lexus luxury models sold around the world, as well as the Crown sold in Japan, moving to repair some 270,000 vehicles to replace valve springs — crucial engine components that are flawed and could cause vehicles to stall.
In August 2008, Toyota changed that spring part, making it thicker, to prevent the problem, spokesman Hideaki Homma told The Associated Press. That is why the latest recall does not affect vehicles produced after August 2008.
What Toyota is experiencing today with the high volume of recalls is typical in many situations. What is really being exposed here is a system and culture oriented towards avoidance and neglect. And now that a new course has been set, the torrent of silent problems is being vetted all at once. However in the end, this will become positive if the problems aren’t too big to manage. Eventually this will lead to new systems, new degrees of accountability and most importantly, an integral part of their new culture.
