v – предлагать (цену), участвовать в торгах
23. contractor n – подрядчик
24. recall n – призыв ранее уволенных работников вернуться на работу; отзыв товара (по качеству)
recall v – призывать, отзывать
25.track record – послужной список; предыстория, прошлые результаты
26. delivery n– поставка
deliverables n – результаты (осязаемые)
deliver v – поставлять
27. domestic a – внутренний; национальный
28. showroom n – салон, демонстрационный зал
29. across-the-board – повсеместный, тотальный, включающий все категории и классы
Exercise 1. Answer the following questions.
1. Why were the Big Three losing market share to imports from Japan and Europe? 2. What was the situation in Detroit when the Taurus project was launched? 3. What was the traditional approach of the American carmakers to creating a new automobile? 4. What are the key characteristics of the «program management» approach? 5. How did Ford identify the world’s best-designed and engineered automotive features? 6. What were the results of the market studies conducted by Ford? 7. What was the input of the «ergonomics group»? 8. How were workers involved in the design process? 9. What was the role of suppliers? 10. Did Ford successfully transplant the Japanese management principles?
Exercise 2*. Which of the following statements are not correct and why?
1. Taurus and Sable manufactured by Ford were huge successes. 2. Detroit suffered from a perception of poor quality and that’s why the Big Three were losing market share to imports from Japan and Europe. 3. Ford executives understood that fuel economy was the reason why consumers were choosing imports. 4. To make sure Taurus and Sable would succeed, Ford invested $3 billion, which was the usual amount of money needed to develop a new car. 5. Normally, the five-year process of creating a new automobile is sequential. 6. With the sequential approach, different units work in close cooperation and are in constant communication with each other. 7. The final responsibility for the vehicle was delegated to Team Taurus. 8. To determine the customers’ preferences, Ford launched its largest series of market studies ever. 9. Detroit carmakers always asked assembly-line workers for their advice. 10. The American automakers usually involved their suppliers in the design process. 11. The Japanese principles were successfully applied in the Taurus project.
Exercise 3. Make 2—4 sentences using the term «track record».
Example: Aeroflot has a good track record in terms of flight safety, but this fact is not well known to its customers.
Oleg Deripaska, head of RUSAL, has an impressive track record of arranging successful mergers and acquisitions that turned his company into the world’s biggest aluminum producer.
Exercise 4. In economic context, «domestic» means «национальный, внутренний». Make 2 sentences with each of the following expressions:
domestic market
domestic producer
domestic prices
Exercise 5*. Fill in the blanks using terms given below.
Getting Customers to Love You
In 1984, General Motors shrank the Cadillac two feet and sales declined, forcing the dismayed…….. to rethink the way it…… cars. Instead of interviewing car buyers only at the start of………….. met over three years with five groups, each composed of 500 owners of Cadillacs and other models, to discuss design ideas. General Motors literally placed these people behind the wheel of prototypes, letting them fiddle with switches and knobs on the instrument panel, door handles, and seat belts while…….. sat in back and took notes.
The result: The new De Ville and Fleetwood cruised into……. with subtle tail fins, nine extra inches, and fender skirts – all reminiscent of the opulent post-war automobiles. As a result…….. quickly increased. The troubles and the comeback taught the company a very tough lesson. GM says, «We learned to….. on the consumer.»
Many companies that once led in technology must now hang on to…….. by carefully tailoring their products to customer needs and……… quickly. Says Du Pont Chairman Richard Heckert: «As the world becomes more and more………., you have to sharpen all your tools. Knowing what’s on the customer’s mind is the most important thing we can do.» It is also cheaper than finding new buyers. Studies by Forum Corp., a Boston-based consulting firm, show that keeping a…….. typically costs only one-fifth as much as acquiring a new one.
Techsonic Industries in Alabama, which manufactures Hummingbird depth finders, keeps its customers…….. even though some 20 Japanese……. make technologically……… products. Depth finders are electronic devices that fishermen use to measure the water beneath the boat and track their prey. Techsonic had nine new-product failures in a row before 1985, when Chairman James Balckom…….. 25 groups of sportsmen across the U.S. and discovered that they wanted a gauge that could be read in bright sunlight.
«The customer literally developed a product for us,» Balkcom says. In the year after the $ 250 depth finder was……., Techsonic’s sales tripled. The company has 40% of the U.S. market for depth finders, and its motto – not surprisingly – is, «The……of any product or service is what the customer says it is».
Source: Fortune, 1990, June 25 (excerpts)
Terms:
interviewed, delivering, manufacturer, competitive, loyal, quality, engineers, development, customer, showrooms, designs, sales, market share, competitors, focus, innovative, launched, planners
Exercise 6. Translate into English.
Когда уволенный из «Форда» Ли Якокка пришел в «Крайслер» на должность президента, компания находилась на грани банкротства. «Крайслер» обладал завидным послужным списком в области исследований и разработок, хорошей дилерской сетью и первоклассными конструкторами. Однако Ли Якокка быстро выяснил, что компания не функционировала как целостный организм. Каждое подразделение работало в полной изоляции, не поддерживая никакого общения с коллегами. В концерне было 35 вице-президентов, которые ничего не слышали