Road to Customer Satisfaction: Hyundai’s Move to Total Quality Management
Hyundai Motor Co. was established in1967 in Korea, but only entered the United States market in 1986. Hyundai’s affordability paved the way for its easy entry, but sales soon dropped because of poor durability and reliability of their vehicles (Taylor, 2010).
Customers’ expectations of automobile companies are hinged on two major components: functional attributes that include efficiency, consistency, reliability, and responsiveness, and emotional attributes that include integrity, sincerity, empathy, and timeliness. Customers do not just look at the performance and reliability of the vehicle, but also on how the vehicle company treats them (“Developing Customer Insight,” n.d.)
They worked with outside suppliers, designers, engineers, and consumer focus groups to produce cars that are not only safe and reliable, but also cars that fit the consumer needs and budget.
They offered a warranty of 10 years or 100,000 miles, the longest warranty in the industry. During the economic crisis, it developed and offered the Hyundai Assurance Program, allowing buyers to return the car they purchased if they lost their jobs within a year.
Now, Hyundai currently ranks fifth among the world’s automobile producers (based on volume), producing quality cars at affordable costs. In 2009, despite the global economic crisis, Hyundai posted growth when other companies posted losses, some even needing government bailout. Hyundai’s increase in quality and safety together with their low prices earned them awards on quality and safety as well as allowed them to grab new market share (Taylor, 2010).
References
Harry, M.J. & Schroeder, R.R. (2000). Six sigma: The breakthrough management strategy
revolutionizing the world’s top corporations. New York, NY: Doubleday
International Communications Research (n.d.). Developing customer insight: The determination
of customer preferences. Retrieved from http://www.icrsurvey.com/docs
Taylor III, A. (2010). Hyundai smokes the competition. CNN Money. Retrieved from http://
money.cnn.com/2010/01/04/autos/hyundai_competition.fortune/index.htm
