Toyota's top U.S. executive told lawmakers on Tuesday that he is not certain the company has fixed its runaway car problems even though it has recalled millions of vehicles around the world.
Although the automaker has blamed obstructing floor mats and sticky gas pedals for reports of cars accelerating out of control, lawmakers at a hearing on Capitol Hill appeared skeptical about the sometimes-conflicting accounts of what has gone wrong.
"Do you believe that the recall on the carpet changes and the recalls on the sticky pedals will solve the problem of sudden, unintended acceleration?" Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) asked James E. Lentz III, president of Toyota Motor Sales USA.
"Not totally," Lentz replied.
"What do you need to do?" Waxman asked.
"We need to continue to be vigilant and continue to investigate all of the complaints that we get from consumers -- that we have done a relatively poor job of doing in the past," Lentz said.
The hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Committee was jammed with spectators and news media from the United States and Japan, who heard emotional testimony about terrifying car rides, as well as engineering analysis and a lengthy corporate apology. Lentz at one point fought back tears recalling that he lost his brother in a car crash years ago.
"There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of that," he said, "so I know what these families go through."
In the end, the hearing outlined but did not resolve the controversy that has rocked the world's largest automaker in recent weeks: What exactly has caused Toyota cars, in rare but occasionally fatal instances, to rev and accelerate out of control?
At another hearing Wednesday, Toyota President Akio Toyoda plans to face the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and attribute the company's troubles to rapid growth.
"I regret that this has resulted in the safety issues described in the recalls we face today, and I am deeply sorry for any accidents that Toyota drivers have experienced," he said in prepared remarks released ahead of the event.
On Tuesday, lawmakers first heard testimony from a retired Tennessee social worker whose Toyota 2007 Lexus ES 350 sped up to 100 miles per hour during a wild, six-mile ride in 2006. The car sped on even after the driver applied the emergency brake and shifted into neutral and then reverse.
"I prayed for God to help me," Rhonda Smith testified tearfully. "I called my husband on the Bluetooth phone system. I knew he could not help me, but I wanted to hear his voice one more time."
For months afterward, the couple tried telling their story to journalists, to Toyota and to federal safety regulators. They said they wanted to warn others of what they viewed as a deadly flaw. They also wanted their money back on a car that had only 2,728 miles on it.
One Knoxville television station, WATE-TV, ran a story.
Toyota looked at the engine but said it seemed fine.
An investigator from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration visited the couple in Tennessee, but he "seemed to arrive with the preconceived idea to sell to us that it was a floor mat problem," Smith testified. She was sure it was not.
It wasn't until the death of a California Highway Patrol officer and his family in August, which was preceded by their fraught 911 call seconds before the crash, that the company and federal regulators seemed to give more credence to consumer complaints.
"Shame on you, Toyota, for being so greedy," Smith said. "And shame on you, NHTSA, for not doing your job."
Lentz, who testified later, reacted to her story.
"Listening to Mrs. Smith, I'm embarrassed for what happened," he said. "You didn't have to have a death to understand the terror she had from that accident."
The Tennessee couple was followed by David Gilbert of Southern Illinois University, a professor who said his interest was "piqued" after seeing news reports about the runaway Toyotas. Based on 30 years teaching and testing automotive technology, Gilbert said he conducted an experiment that showed a Toyota Avalon's onboard computer could be tricked into operating as if nothing was wrong even if the accelerator was stuck and the car was speeding uncontrollably.
"To be quite honest, at the moment I discovered this, I was sick at my stomach," he said.
Gilbert's research was attacked by Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), who has a Toyota assembly plant in his district. He asked Gilbert whether he had "cut three wires" in the car to rig his test. Gilbert responded that he had not; he tapped into the wires with a monitor for electric current, a procedure within scientific methods.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) told Gilbert that Toyota lawyers said they were able to duplicate Gilbert's experiment but that it amounted to "sabotage." She asked Gilbert whether the conditions simulated in his experiment could occur while driving.Yes, Gilbert responded. Then why wasn't Toyota able to find this earlier?
"Maybe they weren't asking the right questions," Gilbert said.
Some lawmakers suggested that Gilbert's research was meant only to make money. Gilbert said he'd been paid $1,800 so far, by safety consultant Sean Kane, who works on behalf of victims' families and trial attorneys.
That Gilbert could so quickly turn up a problem that an entire industry has been looking for seemed "too good to be true," Lentz said.
"It's not in our interest, if a problem exists, to not find it," Lentz reminded lawmakers.
The other key question facing lawmakers is why the NHTSA did not act earlier in response to consumer complaints.
In late-afternoon testimony, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told lawmakers, "You have my 100 percent commitment we will get in the weeds on this."
Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.), who owns between $116,002 and $315,000 in Toyota stock with her husband, recused herself from participating in Tuesday's hearing.
Harman International Industries, her husband's company, also has held lucrative contracts with Toyota for years, equipping cars with Harman Kardon audio systems.
Staff writers Kimberly Kindy and Dana Hedgpeth contributed to this report.
豐田社長豐田章男本周三將出席美國眾議院監督暨政府改革委員會（監改委）舉行的聽證會。外界正議論豐田要為召回事件負責，抑或政府監管不力時，媒體披露 豐田內部文件顯示，豐田早在2007年就曾與美國政府進行談判成功，僅限量召回少數汽車而因此省下1億美元。此一消息使得豐田的形象再受打擊。
底特律新聞報周日率先披露豐田交付給監改委的文件後，美聯社等多家媒體也陸續取得相關文件，讓外界了解到豐田召回事件的更多內幕。
這份在去年7月完成的內部份文件指出，豐田在2007年時與政府談判成功，以「設備召回」的名義召回會卡住的油門踏板，讓召回的範圍大縮水，省下逾1億美元費用，同時也迴避了政府的安全問題調查。
文件顯示2007年8月，美國政府已經針對十多起死亡車禍對豐田展開調查，並且訪問600名Lexus車主後，發現1成反應有暴衝的問 題。但同年9月僅回收5.5萬部因為問題踏板而可能出現暴衝的Camry和Lexus ES350；這些問題跟豐田去年秋天召回約850萬部汽車的狀況是一樣，但時間上已延後了約2年。
去年9月美國發生Lexus高速失控，導致1名巡警和其3名家人喪生，讓豐田汽車的暴衝問題再次受到關注。
雖然豐田在內部文件曝光後立即發表聲明強調以客戶的安全為優先考慮，但仍然讓人懷疑豐田是否把商業利益放在首位，和透過遊說來縮少召回的規模，以及政府有否注意到豐田的安全問題。
美國政府周日表示，已經在調查豐田汽車多起暴衝報告。交通部公布早在2003年12月時，已經調查39起有關豐田在2002年至2003 年出廠的Camry暴衝控訴；其後連2003年至2004年出廠的Lexus ES300，和2002年至2004年出廠的Camry都出現暴衝問題。
University of California, Los Angeles. For more information and an application form, visit www.asqstatdiv. org. Applications are due April 1. Contact Lynne B. Hare at lynne.hare@comcast.net with questions about the scholarship.Georgetown University, IBM, Leader to Leader Institute, Manpower Corp., Potawatomi Bingo Casino and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee participated in the event, along with four former ASQ presidents. Chris Jordan, a photographer who was the keynote speaker at another SR event hosted by ASQ last year, also participated, clem Bezold, a noted futurist, facilitated discussions at the event.| 董事會 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Toyota was the world's most admired automaker, a company that had redefined manufacturing. Then the recalls started. What can other firms learn from a corporate culture that went horribly wrong?
聰明的人為「你」，糊塗的人為「我」
世界上的事情沒有絕對的難易可言，
影響事情難易的，其實是在你、我微妙的方寸之間。
有一位朋友，是大家公認做生意的高手，最近有機會和他一起去拜訪客戶，雙方見面第一件事，我這位朋友非但沒 談生意，反倒問起對方兒子在美國攻讀MBA的情形。幾句發自肺腑的關懷，就已醞釀出知己相見的熱忱。隨後言歸正傳，他說：「兩個月前，貴公司表示有成本的 壓力，所以我請研發人員為貴公司想辦法。經過實驗之後，已為貴公司開發了一種新產品，不但可以幫貴公司將總生產時間減少十五％，還可提高材料利用率八％， 不知道能不能請我們的研發同仁張先生向您報告一下？」
三十分鐘後，該客戶已欣然同意試用這種新產品，不但生意談成了，而且新產品的單價還比舊產品貴六％，你是不是覺得有些不可思議呢？
為人著想才受歡迎
回程車上，我請教這位朋友怎麼這麼會做生意，他笑笑說是碰釘子碰出來的，早年做業務員時並不順利，於是他就 請調做採購，經過一段時間，他慢慢歸納哪些供應商他喜歡，為什麼？哪些供應商他不想見，又為什麼？結果發現了很有趣的現象：討人喜歡的供應商原來處處在為 客戶著想，而不想見的供應商大多數是為了自己的業績纏得人心煩。想通了之後，他得到幾點心得：
‧精明的供應商先為客戶著想，糊塗的供應商總為自己打算。
‧精明的供應商提供解藥，糊塗的供應商販賣產品。
‧精明的供應商先交朋友，糊塗的供應商只做生意。
‧精明的供應商使客戶下次還想見我，糊塗的供應商令客戶避之唯恐不及。
帶著這些心得重回業務領域，他鍥而不捨地修練忘我，真心誠意地以客為尊，結果他發現這個曾令他頭痛的工作，反倒成了易如反掌的事。
這段親身經歷，不覺讓我想起一段寓言。話說有一群人在討論什麼是全世界最難的事，七嘴八舌後，他們得到兩點共識，大家一致認為全世界最難的事分別是：
‧把你口袋裡的鈔票放到我的口袋裡來。
‧把我腦袋裡的想法放到你腦袋裡去。
這樣的結論有沒有道理呢？乍看之下似乎言之成理，但是請再仔細想一想，這兩件事的共同受益者是誰呢？是「我」！
「為我」之前先「忘我」
一談到「我」，事情就難免複雜化，許多人都知道「人不自私天誅地滅」這句殺傷力十足的老話，所以一旦「我的我」卯上了「你的我」，隱藏的自私情結就會激化成表面的衝突與困難。一旦這些衝突大到不可收拾，那麼那群人前述的結論似乎就完全被證實了。
如果冷靜地再想一想，討論事情非要從「我」的角度出發不可嗎？既然每個人都會把「I」大寫（多微妙的英文文 法），那麼「我」可不可以先「忘我」呢？換句話說，我們最先考慮的可不可以是對方的需要呢？如果對方能夠感受到我們的善意，體會到我們的尊重，請問他還好 意思冷若冰霜，還有理由咄咄逼人嗎？
也許，世界上的事情本來就沒有絕對的難易可言，影響事情難易的反倒是在你、我微妙的方寸之間，如果我們能夠先學會為客忘我，那麼客戶也就自然樂意幫我們挪移乾坤、化難為易了。
【本文摘錄自天下遠見讀書俱樂部 http://rs.bookzone.com.tw 】
尋智人 ─ 訪張忠樸總經理
時間: 地點: 永和 訪問:蔡士魁(兼主持人、主筆) 鍾漢清
Q: 在這次訪談前，我們先拜訪過貴公司的網站(http:/www.eurekacp.com.tw),印象深刻，可否請你先介紹一下。
A: 我們的網站尋智，有專人在負責，根據一位教授朋友的回應說，在他拜訪過國內顧問業的網站中，尋智網頁的分類相當清楚，而且內容更新頻率很高。可算是一個有 特色的網站，我希望能讓來訪的網友，每次都有些新的收獲，所以目前我們每週更新一次。我們有一些客戶就是經由網站上來認識我們的。戴明學院可以在這方面共 同努力。
Q: 在接觸到尋智公司的網站和出版品中，有兩、三個術語比較常見:D.O.E和KNOW HOW ，可否請你解釋一下。
A: 所謂D.O.E就是Design Of Experiment (實驗計劃法)，它是開發KNOW HOW的一項工具。我們所謂的KNOW HOW ,則是指:「利用統計手法D.O.E,找出一組最佳的生產條件，而這個最佳的組合可以經得起反覆的驗證」。這種開發出KNOW HOW的能力，正是目前高科技公司要領先競爭對手的關鍵要素。也就是說D.O.E是一種方法，而KNOW HOW是一種目的。
Q: 我倒覺得，除了上述品質工程上的KNOW HOW之外，尋智公司還把輔導業者的成果和心得彙編在網站上發表，這也可算是另一種型式的KNOW HOW也是貴公司獨特的地方。順便再請教一下；Q.F.D和D.O.E有什麼關連嗎？
A: 任何學問都不會單獨存在的，它的另一端都會和別的學問有所連結。Q.F.D (品質機能展開)和D.O.E的連結點就在更源頭的地方，也就是實驗因子的選擇。讓業者活用D.O.E是我們公司的專長，但是生產條件(實驗因子)的選擇就需要借重於客戶的專業知識。換句話說: Q.F.D可以幫助客戶把他們知道的客戶需求，轉換成工程語言，再藉由D.O.E找出最佳的生產條件組合(KNOW HOW)，而且這種條件組合的預期結果是可以再複製出來的。
Q: 用D.O.E來找尋KNOW HOW算是品質改善的一種手法，這種傳統的Q.C.C (品管圈)有什麼不同呢？
A: 傳統的QCC是一群工作性質相似的人員，針對例行性的工作進行改善的活動。推動D.O.E我們則要求All one team ，要求跨部門、跨功能的組合，把研發、製程和生產的人員都納入，讓他們尊重彼此的獨特專業，集思廣義地共同去解決困難，然後建立一個高良率的製程。
蔡: 我在近二十年前的在職訓練中，就有請台大農經系教授到廠講授D.O.E ，可是沒兩下就全部還給老師了。D.O.E的迄今普及度不足，讓我很感慨，連帶對中共的華羅庚在普及「雙法」提 升產能的印象極深刻，所以也想利用義工家長之便，對小學生講授一點統計的知識。
A :我很贊同要把統計知識普及化，而且我還有三個心得:(1)要打破學生的心理障礙，不再認為統計是很可怕的東西。(2)講統計要深入淺出，能夠發現統計就 和我們的生活很相關；例如班上同學同一天生日的機率有多大？有沒有人是相同身高？相同到小數點第幾位？高個子的定義是什麼？這樣就很容易把變異的觀念帶出 來，引出學生的好奇心，(3)要讓學生對自己有信心，能活學活用。很可惜，我們大專院校理工科系中，把統計列作必修的並不多見。
鍾: 要讓統計普及，必需讓它有趣，好玩。像美國的戴明學會就將戴明的知識設計成為遊戲的型式，在網站上與大家共享。補充一下；華羅庚先生是中共推崇的質量管理大師，他所推廣的是作業研究中的CPM與優選法，不是實驗計劃法。華先生對於把統計用到品管上也沒有什麼表現。
Q: 以下想問些較私人的問題。請問你如何走到這個顧問業的？
A: 只能用因緣湊巧四個字來形容。我在華通電腦公司做到總管理 處處長的職位時，下一步是什麼呢？總經理嗎？那個職位與我的個性相合嗎？為了使個人專長與工作做更好結合，所以才會以教人活用D.O.E為職志；而去創辨了尋智專業顧問公司。這 幾年下來的成果，讓我步伐更堅定，對自己的當年抉擇也更歡喜。
Q: 你曾經在好幾家一流的公司服務過，那些公司可否算是一個學習型組織的標竿企業呢？
A: 面對未來，企業內的員工都應有再學習的能力，企業才可能繼續生生不息。最近我常會問人，「我們這一代的文盲多，還是我們父親那一代的文盲多？」如果我們把 文盲定義為一數學式子；分母是一個時代所有的知識，分子是一個人所擁有的知識。(詳見拙著新文盲時代)那麼我們就會發現到，其實我們這一代的文盲比父親那 一代還多。每次去逛書店，我明顯感受到書架上的新書目不暇給，這還不包括電腦網站上的資訊交流呢！所以學習型組織是必然的趨勢。企業每一位員工都學習一 些，才可讓整個企業體文盲的比例變少一些。
更重要的一點是，我們過去的經驗不只不全然可靠。甚至還可能讓我們面對未來變革時。由一項資產變成各負債。也就是 說，企業員工必須有系統的去學習。有目的的去使用，讓知識在加速度組織中發揮效用。許多企業中的讀書會紛紛成立，這不是巧合，而是一種洞燭機先，面對未來 的一項準備，我本人喜歡讀書，因緣際會接辦一個讀書會，在尋智公司的網站也有尋智書摘的一個園地，都是在這種認知下的具體行動。
Q: 你是一位虔誠的基督徒，請問宗教信仰對你的影響有多大呢？
A: 我是得天獨厚，生長在一個基督教的家庭。本來基督教的教義中，就有著自我調整與改善的精神，這與我多年來從事品管工作是相輔相成的，聖經也變成我的另一項 資源來印證許多真理。戴明博士也是一位虔誠的基督徒，他在講領導就十分有人 性。譬如他講領導、要求自己先做好榜樣，要主管不要責罵身陷系統中的部屬，要去探討系統的因素，像紅珠子實驗就是一個例，他的宗教情懷，讓他能把每一位員 工都當平等的人來對待。比起若干政治人物只講權位(Authority)，不講人性是截然不同的。所以看戴明的書令人如沐春風，心想；如果我有這樣的老闆 有多好！
鍾: 這就是所謂的「Servant Leadership」。戴明博士篤信基督教中的信、望、愛，所以才會在九十高齡還要努力來修改他的著作，這種Hope和Love，也都會繼續影響他的信徒吧！
In November, top auto safety officials made an unusual request of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. After reviewing complaints about Toyota vehicles, the regulators said they believed the automaker was stalling their inquiries and wanted to go to Japan to stress just how serious their concerns had become.
In Japan, 2010 Prius models waited on Tuesday for shipment. More than 400,000 of Toyota's hybrid and other gas-electric models worldwide are being recalled.
Ray LaHood defended the national traffic safety agency on Tuesday.
Akio Toyoda, left, of Toyota, met with Japan's transportation minister, Seiji Maehara, on Tuesday about the recalls.
Executives at Toyota “were dragging things out, and we’d had it,” a senior American transportation official said in recounting new details of the talks. “We were getting excuses that didn’t make sense anymore.”
Mr. LaHood approved the unprecedented trip, but it would be a month before his top safety aides met with Toyota executives, and another month before Toyota disclosed to Washington that it had found problems with some sticking accelerators. Not once in more than six years of reviews of Toyota’s problems did officials at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which regulates automakers, use their power to subpoena Toyota’s records, even though they said they believed the automaker was withholding critical information.
Now, with the recalls of some eight million Toyota vehicles since late last year, including more than 400,000 models of the 2010 Prius and other hybrid models this week, the traffic safety agency promises to be scrutinized as much as Toyota itself. Members of Congress, independent experts on auto experts and others say they want to know why the agency did not act more aggressively in investigating Toyota’s problems.
“This is the most extensive vehicle recall in history, and we want to know, what did Toyota know about its defects and when did they know it, and what did N.H.T.S.A. know and did it act quickly enough?” Representative Henry A. Waxman, the California Democrat who leads the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said on Tuesday.
Some Congressional officials and outside experts say they believe the safety agency has become too close to the industry it is charged with regulating, as a number of agency employees have gone to work for Toyota. Among other issues that need to be addressed, they also cite the agency’s limited use of fines or subpoenas against auto manufacturers, a dearth of technical expertise in areas like electronic throttle problems and frequent turnover in its leadership.
Joan Claybrook, who was the director of the agency in the Carter administration, said that it “should be the government cop on the auto regulatory beat,” but too often it was not.
“It has enormous authority to do its job,” she said, “but it doesn’t always have the staff or money. And in this particular case, they took the road of least resistance.”
Mr. Waxman’s committee has sought documents from the safety agency and scheduled a hearing this month on the problems. A second group, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, postponed a hearing until Feb. 24.
In recent days, Toyota has begun taking out full-page newspaper advertisements to repair its reputation and has brought on new lobbyists to make its case in Washington, where many lawmakers have benefited from the campaign contributions and jobs at home provided by the company. And transportation officials have begun pushing back as well.
“The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has the most active defect investigation program in the world,” Mr. LaHood said on Tuesday in a statement to The New York Times. “Its safety experts are dedicated to finding and fixing safety problems, and they review 30,000 consumer complaints every year. Over just the last three years, N.H.T.S.A.’s investigations have resulted in 524 recalls involving 23.5 million vehicles — a stellar record.”
But internal agency documents and interviews with auto safety experts demonstrate that the safety agency and the auto giant it regulated engaged in a Kabuki dance of sorts in the months and years before tensions coalesced. Drivers would file complaints by the dozens about mysterious accelerations and other hazards, federal regulators would open official reviews, Toyota would promise answers, the regulators would complain about not receiving the information they needed, and in the end, almost nothing would come of any of it.
Six times since 2003 in fact, the safety agency opened inquiries into possible Toyota safety problems, and six times it closed them without any significant action.
In 2008, for instance, the agency examined a request from the owner of a Toyota Tacoma pickup to investigate “sudden and uncontrolled acceleration.” After a preliminary review, the safety agency concluded in a memorandum given to House investigators that: “In view of the need to allocate and prioritize N.H.T.S.A.’s limited resources to best accomplish the agency’s safety mission, the petition is denied.”
In recent years, the agency has dealt with financing and staff cuts in some areas. The Transportation Department announced last week that the administration was seeking money for 66 new positions.
The agency also has had a revolving door of leaders, with about a half-dozen directors since 2005. The current administrator, David Strickland, was confirmed only in December.
The agency was stymied by Toyota’s centralized decision-making, but did not act aggressively in its dealings with the company’s leaders. Over its six defect investigations, agency investigators never met with Japanese executives, only Toyota officials in the United States.
Christopher Santucci, a manager of safety affairs for Toyota in Washington, testified in a deposition in a lawsuit that all decisions on defects and vehicle recalls were made in Japan.
Federal regulators were routinely told during investigations that requests for safety data or vehicle testing must be relayed to Japan for answers. By the fall of last year, N.H.T.S.A. officials had become frustrated by delays in receiving information.
Even though the agency was not getting all the information it wanted from Japan, it did receive data about possible defects from State Farm, the insurance firm, beginning in 2007. The agency said that information was incorporated into its continuing investigations, but Congressional officials say it should have set off louder warnings at the agency.
Congressional investigators have indicated that they are looking into the agency’s ability to investigate possible defects in Toyota’s computerized, electronic throttle-control systems. The agency is expected to hire outside experts to assist in its inquiry, said a federal official with knowledge of the decision.
But the Transportation Department said the move was not a sign of any shortcomings in its level of in-house expertise. Since 1980, the agency has conducted 141 investigations into throttle controls, both mechanical and electronic versions, the department said.
The Toyota recalls occurred a decade after N.H.T.S.A. withstood heavy criticism from Congress over its failure to detect a pattern of rollovers in Ford S.U.V.’s with Firestone tires. In that case, State Farm had given the agency documents warning of safety failures, but Congressional investigators said the agency was slow to realize the significance.
“This is history repeating itself,” said Clarence Ditlow, who runs the Center for Auto Safety and is scheduled to appear as a witness at the House oversight hearing.
“Where were they before this?” he asked of the safety agency. “The whole relationship is really too cozy. They view their constituency as the auto industry and not the consumer. It’s a classic case of a regulatory agency that over time becomes captured by the industry it regulates.”
China and Japan are each going through their own unique quality crises. In China, officials are hunting for 170 tons of contaminated milk powder that is still on shelves more than a year after the melamine scandal was first exposed. And in Japan, discussions are focused on all that has gone wrong with its automotive industry after Toyota's recent recalls. But a closer look at the two scandals shows how far apart the countries are in their approach to quality—and how much China stands to learn from Japan.
China's quality challenge has at times been compared to Japan's efforts in ...
這新聞有許多有趣的事 譬如說他們怪SGS 公司的化驗報告中沒有將超過標準的用紅字警告他們 含鉛超標 85度C海綿寶寶筷全數回收 | ||||||
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Linda Deming Ratcliff, Founding Trustee, taught thirty years in primary and special education, specializing in learning disabilities. After retirement from full-time teaching, she worked in the special education department of the local school system as educational diagnostician for Child Find and case manager for the department of special education appeals. She and her husband now carry out much of the administrative work of the Deming Institute. She holds a B.S. in elementary education, psychology, and philosophy from Longwood College and an M.S. in special education from George Washington University. She was named as one of the Outstanding Teachers of America in 1973.
William J. Bellows, Ph.D., Associate Trustee is an Associate Technical Fellow in the Enterprise Thinking Network at Boeing’s Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power business unit. In that capacity, he provides facilitation and instruction of enterprise thinking activities that encompass the Deming philosophy of management. In 1987, Dr. Bellows was exposed to the quality improvement techniques of Dr. Genichi Taguchi and for several years led an AVCO Lycoming division's applications of Taguchi Methods. In 1990, he became a student of Dr. Deming’s work, thereupon worked to integrate Deming’s System of Profound Knowledge into Taguchi’s design system. At Boeing he leads efforts to foster an organizational thinking transformation.
Dr. Bellows is a founding board member and co-president of the In2:InThinking Network, founder and active leader of the Deming Discussion Group in the Los Angeles area and a board member of the L. A. chapter of the Volunteers of America. Bill holds a B.S., M. S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York.
Kevin Edwards Cahill, Associate Trustee, is Dr. Deming’s grandson. He is the Co-founder and COO of ViewBridge, Inc. The company was founded in 1999 and through its operating division, AdConnections, is implementing a globally integrated end to end system for the Media Industry. Previously, he was Vice President Sales Manager for Media rep firm, Katz Communications. As a member and chairman of various company committees, he helped guide the design and implementation of various sales, technology, and management systems. Kevin holds a BA in history from UCLA.
J. Vincent Cahill, Associate Trustee, is responsible for setting direction, policy and procedures for the HR Shared Services organization. Oversees the baseline processes that maintain the PeopleSoft HRMS database, which includes accurate processing, maintenance and security for corporate information. Provided project oversight to upgrade existing technologies and implementation of integrated technologies to leverage the deployment of automated processes. He holds an MBA from George Washington University and a B.S.B.A. in Finance from Georgetown University.
John A. Hillerich, III, Associate Trustee, is President and Chairman of the Board of Hillerich & Bradsby Company, a manufacturer of sporting goods equipment. Its well-known products include Louisville Slugger baseball and softball equipment, PowerBilt golf equipment, and Louisville ice hockey equipment. He is a 1961 graduate of Vanderbilt University and joined the family-owned company upon his graduation. He held various positions within the company and became President upon the death of his father, John A. Hillerich, Jr., in 1970.
Hillerich & Bradsby Co. places a strong emphasis on quality through the use of Dr. W. Edwards Deming's philosophy. The company initiated its own program in 1984 and is currently participating with other companies, locally and nationally, to increase awareness and share experiences. Mr. Hillerich is active in local charity and community groups. He is a member of the Board for Alliant Healthcare and Louisville Science Museum. In addition, Mr. Hillerich serves on the Board for the Center for Quality of Management in Boston and the Board of Trustees of Brevard College. He is an avid outdoorsman. Fishing and golf occupy his time when he can get away from the business environment.
Joyce Nilsson Orsini, Ph.D., Associate Trustee, is Associate Professor of Management Systems at Fordham University Graduate School of Business, where she directs the Deming Scholars MBA program. She has been a practicing statistician and consultant to industrial management and government for more than 25 years. She has held positions including Vice President of Research, Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer in the banking industry. Dr. Deming directed her doctoral dissertation research at New York University. She assisted Dr. Deming with his teaching at N.Y.U., as well as with many public and private seminars. The Metropolitan Section of the American Society for Quality awarded her the Deming Medal.
Richard R. Steele, Associate Trustee, is the founder and CEO of Peaker Services, Inc., a company that restores Locomotive engines, located in Brighton, Michigan. He has been an active member of the Deming Study Group of Greater Detroit for many years. He is a Board member and House Leader for Habitat for Humanity in Huron Valley. Formerly, he served on the Boards for McPherson Hospital and Old Kent Bank of Brighton. Mr. Steele is Past President of the Brighton Township Homeowners Association. He holds a B.S.M.E. and B.S. Aero E. from Iowa State University. His outside interests include home building, snow skiing, mountain biking and playing the piano.
Michael D. Tveite, Ph.D., Associate Trustee, is a founder of the Tetrad Group, a consulting firm based in Minneapolis. He works with organizations in manufacturing, distribution, government and education. He assisted Dr. Deming with numerous four-day seminars and accompanied him on consulting visits. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Deming Scholars M.B.A. program at Fordham University. He holds a B.A. degree in mathematics from St. Olaf College and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in statistics from Iowa State University.Through lectures, case studies, and interactive discussion, you will examine a range of critical challenges facing boards of directors today. You will explore strategies and techniques for structuring positive, productive relationships and efficient processes that will enable your company's board and management team to meet those challenges head-on. Examples from companies in diverse industries will illustrate the impact of cooperation between the board and management team on long-term company success. Curriculum topics include:
| 主要作者 | Stoesz, Edgar | |||
| 書名/作者 | Doing good even better : how to be an effective board member of a nonprofit organization / Edgar Stoesz | |||
| 出版項 | Intercourse, PA : Good Books, c2007
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| 總圖4F科技資料區 | HD62.6 S76 2007 | 2812819 | 可流通 |
TOKYO — Toyota says it is recalling about 437,000 Prius and other hybrid vehicles worldwide to fix brake problems – the latest in a string of embarrassing safety lapses at the world's largest automaker.
"I apologize for causing trouble and worries for many customers over the quality and safety of Toyota," President Akio Toyoda said at a press conference Tuesday in Tokyo.
"We sincerely acknowledge safety concerns from our customers," he said. "We have decided to recall as we regard safety for our customers as our foremost priority."
The recall is the latest blow to Toyota Motor Corp., which is in the midst of recalling more than 7 million vehicles worldwide because of problems with floor mats, which can trap gas pedals, and faulty gas pedals that are slow to return to the idle position. The 2010 Prius wasn't part of those recalls.
There have been about 200 complaints in Japan and the U.S. about a delay when the brakes in the Prius were pressed in cold conditions and on some bumpy roads. The delay doesn't indicate a brake failure. The company says the problem can be fixed in 40 minutes with new software that oversees the controls of the antilock brakes.
Toyota officials went to Japan's Transport Ministry earlier Tuesday to formally notify officials the company is recalling the 2010 Prius gas-electric hybrid – the world's top-selling hybrid car. The automaker is also recalling two other hybrid models in Japan, the Lexus HS250h sedan, sold in the U.S. and Japan, and the Sai, which is sold only in Japan.
The 223,000 cars being recalled in Japan include nearly 200,000 Priuses sold from April last year through Monday, according to papers the automaker filed with the ministry. The Prius is Japan's top-selling car.
In the U.S., Toyota will recall 133,000 Prius cars and 14,500 Lexus HS250h vehicles. Nearly 53,000 Priuses are also being recalled in Europe.
Owners in Japan of the 2010 Prius can get their cars fixed starting Wednesday, said Ryusuke Itazaki, chief of the recall department at the Transport Ministry.
He said Toyota would suspend production of the Sai and Lexus HS250h in Japan as the company doesn't have the updated software for those models yet.
If drivers experience any delayed reaction when depressing the brakes in any of these models, they should keep pressing, he said.
Itazaki said complaints about the brakes started coming in as the weather got colder, particularly from northern Japan.
He also said Toyota should have taken action sooner. "If the company had paid more attention to consumers' viewpoint, it could have realized that there was a safety problem."
Toyoda, the president, has been criticized for being largely invisible during the two weeks after the company announced Jan. 21 the gas pedal recall in the U.S., Europe and China. He apologized at his first public press conference last Friday, but was criticized by the Japanese media for failing to outline concrete steps to tackle the safety crisis and reassure customers around the world.
In contrast to his halting English in response to questions from foreign reporters at last week's news conference, Toyoda seemed much better prepared Tuesday, reading from an English statement after doing so in Japanese.
"We will redouble our commitment to quality as a lifeline of our company," he said in English. "We will do everything in our power to regain the confidence of our customers."
U.S. safety officials have launched an investigation into problems with the brakes.
The problem is suspected in four crashes resulting in two minor injuries, according to data gathered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is investigating the matter. Toyota says it's cooperating with NHTSA's investigation.
Problems with hybrid braking systems haven't been limited to Toyota.
Ford Motor Co. said last week it plans to fix 17,600 Mercury Milan and Ford Fusion gas-electric hybrids because of a software problem that can give drivers the impression that the brakes have failed. The automaker says the problem occurs in transition between two braking systems and at no time are drivers without brakes.
Toyota's plug-in hybrid is also being recalled in Japan – a largely experimental model for rental and government use, with 159 sold.
The Prius holds a cherished spot in Toyota's vehicle lineup and is symbolic of its leadership in the "green" car market.
Toyota was one of the first companies to mass-market a hybrid that combines an electric motor with a gas engine, introducing the Prius in Japan in 1997. Its high gas mileage made it popular among environmentally conscious drivers, especially when gas prices spiked two years ago.
But the complexity of the Prius, a highly computerized car, has led to problems in the past. In 2005, the company repaired 75,000 of them to fix software glitches that caused the engine to stall. It has also had trouble with headlights going out.
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Associated Press Writers Mari Yamaguchi, Shino Yuasa and Malcolm Foster in Tokyo, Aoife White in Brussels, Tom Krisher and Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit and Ken Thomas in Washington contributed to this report.
© Jennifer Roche
'Let's try common sense," President Obama said in the State of the Union address, provoking a spontaneous burst of laughter in the House of Representatives chamber. The unintended humor exposes an important truth about Washington: Everyone knows that won't happen.
More troubling, however, was that the president's speech revealed why common sense is nonexistent. Mr. Obama wants new laws to tell us how to do things better—when the need is to overhaul old laws to restore freedom of choice and individual responsibility. Up and down the chain of authority, the accumulation of law and entitlements precludes sensible decisions.
Twain was born and died in years in which Halley's Comet passed by Earth: 1835 and 1910... His pseudonym, Mark Twain, was taken from Mississippi riverboat terminology; it's a measure of depth... Twain married the former Olivia Langdon in 1870; she died in 1904, and the melancholy tone of Twain's later writings is often attributed to his depression over her death.
YURI KAGEYAMA | 02/ 9/10 03:06 AM |