TATA Motors, the name does not need any introduction. The company has always focused on capitalizing their core competencies or competitive advantages for enhancing their market share according to their strategy.
TATA, The Name Speaks
Being the part of such a large TATA group is itself a competitive advantage. This affiliation provides the company with the needed knowledge and technology resources for taking their business to various parts of the world.
Geographic Location
Being active and dynamic, TATA motors has competitive advantage for being located in India for the low cost labor base. The company fully understands not only the Indian market but many emerging markets as well. The products are manufactured at lower costs and sold to the new markets earning huge profits. India is known for least expensive automobile parts which gives TATA a direct access. Moreover the policies and regulations in India are very favorable for TATA for business expansion.
Innovation and R&D
The excellent innovation and research and development at TATA motors have created examples for the rivals. The company has come up with the least expensive car model NANO which is one of its own kind and no other car manufacturer has ever created such. This automobile has astonished the industry for its low cost and material and technology. The main competitive advantage came from their remarkable innovation and development. TATA has various research centers throughout the India working on the improvement of the engine efficiency, design, style and instrumentation of vehicles.
Mergers and Acquisitions:
Continuous growth and expansion is the company goal. TATA has successfully acquired various companies for breaking into the foreign markets. While the company has delivered amazing results in domestic market, its subsidiary Jaguar land rover has broken all the records of competitors as a top luxury automobile manufacturer. This mega expansion mode calls for major product development, capacity capitalization and various national and international mergers.
Effective HR Management
The people strategy is lean and strong since ever. TATA has a very strong workforce base however it has cut off the surplus staff recently in June 2017 as a part of organization restructuring and gaining a competitive advantage. The organization is refreshed by changing the functions and locations of various employees. The staff is also provided necessary training and skill development courses. The company gives utmost importance to dealer training as well to improve their productivity. Few outsourcing activities like logistics and facilities management has also called up for downsizing of the workforce at TATA.
Product Development
TATA aims to fulfill the emerging needs of the automobile industry by coming up with new range of products. These products are manufactured with purpose of providing comfort, reliability, safety, capacity and value to the end customers. In order to stay ahead of the competition, the company is going for huge investments in the area of product development. TATA Ace is being introduced in commercial vehicle market for snatching the market share of its rivals. Another sporty vehicle Nexon with both diesel and petrol engine is also attracting customers already.