Renult_Nissan__the_Making_of_a_Global_Alliance

Reading both sides of the same story really gives the opportunity to illustrate a mental picture of what this negotiation was all about. In this case, we find that one of the main struggles within any alliance or merger is the difference in management and organizational culture, to add more, the industry these companies are in gives little room for adjustments, since a decision is worth millions of jobs, and dollars and hours. However, this merger seems so perfect for each other that one can only admire the vision of these two companies to come together and form what they are today. In the case of Renult, its competences in cost management, marketing and design, global strategy for platforms and purchasing and the innovation in its products, gave way to complement these exact downfalls in Nissan’s management. On the other hand, Nissan’s engineering shocked Renault’s engineers with its advances in technology. Though Nissan’s plant was producing way below its capacity, Nissan’s plant productivity was another thing Renault saw as an opportunity for growth. The simple facts that their product portfolio complemented each other so well and that they could both maintain their own brands was reason enough to come together in a time when forming a larger group in the automotive industry was the only way to ensure long-term sustainability in order to have influence on the world market. In my opinion Nissan had far more problems than Renult to deal with. Its finances were very bad with continuous losses for many years, adding to that, its Keiretsu system was leading them to high cost suppliers and irrational purchasing, even worst, Nissan lacked the technology to produce small cars which was exactly what the market demanded. However, both of these companies had what I believe was their strongest allied, honesty. Further research has lead me to believe that it is this honesty that has kept them together throughout more than a decade, and though they might be competition in many markets, their common CEO and production facilities allow them to benefit from each other’s strengths, (Hall 2011). Even more, it is the knowledge sharing of strategic management that has resulted in Renult Nissan becoming the third largest global automaker as of 2009, has given them a global market share of 9% and has placed them in major markets such as USA, Europe, Japan, China, India and Russia, (Renult, 2011). As a conclusion, I think that many facts that could’ve separated the companies were wisely set aside and the determination to compete and keep growing, or the determination to pull out of a bad scene in Nissan’s case, resulted in one of a kind example of group work and joint vision. It’s pleasing to read that two different organizational cultures can become one when the mind is set to achieve a common objective. BIBLIOGRAPHY Hall, Emma. Nissan and Renault Debut Almost Identical Electric-Car. AdAgeGlobal. Retrieve 8 Sept. 2011, from http://adage.com/article/global-news/nissan-renault-debut-identical-electric-car-ads/22749/ Hervé du Penhoat, Nicole. 2011.The Renult-Nissan Alliance. Renult Group. Retrieve 08 Sept, 2011, from http://www.renault.com/en/groupe/l-alliance-renault-nissan/pages/l-alliance-renault-nissan.aspx