Abstract
More than 9 million cars were sold around the world in late 2007, and Toyota surpassed General Motors and became the number one manufacturer in the car market industry. This American car company had been a leader on the market for seventy two long years. This is thus a big success for Toyota. The success of the group is often attributed to its Just in Time production methods. This is true as these methods enable the company to achieve a very high level of production. A lot of companies drew their inspiration from Toyota; even in sectors other than automotive. However, we often forget that these methods just account for a small part of the company's success which finds its roots in the Toyota culture with strong behaviors and a vision mainly inspired by the country and its founder, which give the group a deep originality compared to most other multinational companies. What then is Toyota's culture? What is it composed of? Why was it so important in the success of the company? Where this culture comes from? And, how did Toyota to make a competitive advantage from this culture? Can Toyota's culture be transplanted abroad? How has Toyota managed this transplantation when entering the US market? Are Japan and US cultures compatible?
