JIT implementation: outlines of a strategy

Abstract

The logic of JIT represents the core of a new management paradigm that has been used to devastating effect by Japanese companies during the 1970s and 1980s. in this paper, intended primarily for practitioners and tea hers, we consider the problem of a planned changeover to JIT and the strategy this would entail. A strategy matrix is first proposed to distinguish a "True JIT" strategy from three others viz: Anti JIT, Psuedo JIT, New JIT. A start towards True JIT, on which the paper focuses, is provided by Gunn's (1987) four stage progression model. But in our study we review ten cases of JIT implementation to arrive at an 8 stage model which we call the Eight Fold Way. The cases studied include Toyota and Mazda in Japan; Kawasaki, Bridgestone, GM-Toyota and Matsushita in the U.S.; American exponents of JIT such as Hewlett Packard and Harley Davidson and finally, Matsushita and Suzuki in India. Some broader implications of our findings e.g. for small/medium enterprises and for management education are also suggested.