Sustainability Case Study: General Motors And Volkswagen Group

Improved Essays
Sustainability
Sustainability is defined as a company’s ability to achieve business goals and to increase long-term shareholder value by integrating economic, environmental, and social opportunities into their business strategies. Other definitions include sustainability being the management and coordination of environmental, social and financial demands and concerns to ensure responsible, ethical and ongoing success. Simply put, it is the process of using things in a way that will ensure long term success.
Both companies, General Motors and Volkswagen Group practice sustainability. When it comes to their field, which is automotive manufacturing, sustainability will include reduced carbon emissions in their vehicles, using resources as sparingly as possible and more. These companies promise to
…show more content…
They emphasize on how the company believes that sustainability goals are best achieved when integrated into its business model.
The report from General motors splits its sustainability progress into four sections: Design, Build, Sell, and Reinvest. In the design section, the company works on leading in the research and development of advanced technologies to help reduce petroleum dependency. They also plan to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. When it comes to Build, they plan to increase the benefits of operating facilities in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. They wish to offer sustainable vehicle choices around the world, when it comes to Sell, and when it comes to Reinvest, they intend to ensure the company’s viability, be an attractive employer, and to improve the quality of life in its communities.
General Motor’s work has spanned across various stakeholders, such as achieving new fuel economy standards in the United States with policymakers. They also push the envelope in electric vehicle development with the help of LG in South

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    This is a sustainable benefit for the company because they are not only saving money but are making money from selling the old materials they don’t need. Since new car designs and materials are always changing, the money can be put towards new and improved sustainable efforts. 2. What other benefits might…

    • 627 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    General Motors (GM) operates in a customer-centric atmosphere. Since GM’s bankruptcy and recall efforts, the company has been very sensitive about their customer base. GM indicates that they “are passionate about earning customers for life” (GM, 2015). In addition, GM suggests there team shares the same enthusiasm for “customers and a competitive spirit that drives us to excellence” (GM, 2015). According to GM (2015), this means that we are committed to delivering vehicles with compelling designs, flawless quality and reliability, and leading safety, fuel economy and infotainment features.…

    • 364 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The impact of environmental change on the automobile industry has been significant and widespread. There has been widespread and fast changes in the environment in the past decade which is causing the need for the executives and leaders of auto makers to be cutting edge in their decision making and the pace at which there companies innovate. In the past the business model was clear and the companies felt safe with no direct completion. With the advent of global and international commerce the rules of the game changed it wasn’t just the USA competing against ourselves. It turned into the USA competing against the world.…

    • 368 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ups Mission Statement

    • 1992 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Environmental Analysis United Parcel Service (UPS) gathers data from all areas of the company and generates a sustainability report. It displays accomplishments and challenges and provides detailed data about the actions of the company. Highlights of the report consist of the marketplace, environment, workplace and community. A team reviews the report to discuss the year’s strengths and weaknesses in these and other areas. They evaluate the difference from previous years and addresses variances and opportunities for improvement.…

    • 1992 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to the article in 2025 all car companies will have the cars going 54.5 miles per gallon of gas. I think that this is important because it's not only good for the environment it's also good for us because we don’t have to pay as much money when we are driving our cars. Another fact from the article is that we are starting to use wind and solar energy which can also be the start of solar powered cars. This is important because this could be a start in not using so much gas on cars. This will definitely impact our world because with this big change there won't be as much polluted air, ground, and water…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For a long time, America had firmly hold their leadership role in automotive production market and only shared the position with Germany and Japan after the World War 2. Despite the unstable condition of the world economy and politics, there is still room for this industry to develop but at the same time, there are issues related to the market-share, environment and new technologies that the automakers and U.S Government are facing. With the raising of Chinese economy, the U.S like other countries has to cope with many challenges. Looking at the whole pictures of car manufacturers, there are “big boys” originally born in America – General Motors, Ford, Chrysler but now, as we can see, freedom in international trade has wide opened the domestic market to foreign carmakers to come in, and those three companies have to share with new players. We see Honda,…

    • 696 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ford continues to innovate their approach to reaching out to the target customer. Ford is iconic for trucks and sports utility vehicles (SUV) in the US and the global market. However, instabilities in economies across the globe, as well as the high cost of petroleum, has caused Ford to redefine their image and follow customer trends toward more fuel efficient and lower carbon producing vehicles (Ford Motor Company, 2013). This new image is slowing coming about, but Ford is currently producing some of the most energy efficient vehicles in the U.S. (Voight, 2013).…

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    EV1 Case Study

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In the end, the EV1 cost GM over $1 billion. General Motors created a model for an electric car that they displayed at the Environmental Protection Agency’s First Symposium on Low Pollution Power Systems Development. There are numerous matters that are indicate growth of the electric vehicle industry. Some significant ideas consist of the falling expenses…

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Vw Corporate Culture

    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Gap 3: Corporate Governance and Culture. Within VW it is not clear who approved the fitting of the “defeat device” software and had awareness of its usage at this stage. It has been insinuated that the illicit software could have been connected since 2008, just before VW presented its new creation of “clean diesel” cars to the US market. A number of executives, managers and engineers have been provisionally suspended by VW as part of its own internal examination, involving some board-level executives at VW branches.…

    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Introduction General Motors (GM) is a Detroit based American automobiles manufacturer, and as of 2015 was the world’s 21st largest company as per Fortune 500. GM was founded by William Durant in 1908. Pursuing the strategy of “a car for every purse and purpose”, GM made a number of innovations to the automobile in the early 20th century. Later on, environmental concerns, increased oil prices, and foreign competition, forced GM to innovate further, bringing about engines that could run on unleaded petrol, cars with air-bags, and emission reducing technologies. Despite these improvements, however, GM’s position in the US market began to weaken with the introduction of cars made in Japan and Germany.…

    • 1657 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    1. Introduction : Sustainable management is the ability to successfully management of the quality life in our planet. It is applicable to all aspects of our lives. The practices of a business are also sustainable managed.…

    • 2073 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    The Benefits Of Go Green

    • 1822 Words
    • 8 Pages

    According to Weisser, sustainability means “reused, recycled, or repeated in some way” (602). By reduce, reused, and recycled, the growth of human and the economy will be balance without damaging the environment. Because there is too much waste, pollution, and toxic chemicals generate by human that harm the environment badly. “Sustainability must be economically feasible – human development depends on the long-term production, use, and management of resources as part of a global economy.” (Weisser, 604).…

    • 1822 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For decades, the concept of luxury has evolved from a status assumption to a sheer lifestyle offering that goes beyond traditional imagination. Jean-Noël Kapferer, the co-creator of The Luxury Strategy; states that luxury has opened it’s doors to the mass interest and is changing the old belief of a having a selective market to elevate economies and achieve record breaking profits. The breadth and depth of this change has acquainted luxury brands to a global affluent audience. (Doran, S., 2013)…

    • 716 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Sustainability is all about striving and thriving for the future which is the core foundation of any business. Thus sustainability is the ability to achieve success without sacrificing the future needs of a business. As a result the organisations focuses on the fulfilling current customer demands at the same time taking into accord the desires and wants of the future generation in order to achieve sustainability. Organisational sustainability thus revolves around the core principle of keeping the business obtainable. The essence of organisational sustainability is based on the principle of enhancing the social, economic and environmental conditions in which the business operates.…

    • 1438 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    When implementing this strategy, it is important for operations managers to do market research. Tesla noticed that the use of gasoline cars was negatively effecting the environment, therefore they designed a car that is powered by electricity and consumes 50% less CO2. This allowed Tesla to target consumers who also had the same vision as Tesla, focusing on being environmentally sustainable. Most individuals would prefer a car that is easy, convenient, reliable and environmentally friendly. Tesla has met all these factors which has pleased consumers and therefore improved the performance of the business.…

    • 1833 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays