Internationalization strategies of Japanese and German automobile companies

Abstract

"The questions in this article are directed at the relationship between internationalization and industrial relations. There was a shift in the constellation of actors in the world automobile industry in the 1980s. The internationalization strategy of the Japanese companies became the dominant phenomenon. Public perception also shifted: instead of talking about the power and domination of the 'multinationals', the new topic of discussion was the management and production concept of the 'transplants'. The term 'transplant' has up to now primarly been used to refer to the internationalization of the production structures of Japanese manufacturers. This article deals with the more recent trends towards internationalization in the German automobile industry with a look at the same process in Japan. This reference does not only come from an interest in comparison. The development in the German automobile industry since the mid-1980s has been influenced and shaped to a large degree by the internationalization of the Japanese automobile industry." (author's abstract)