Of the past 20 years or so, one of the best product management jobs to have in the United States had to be a product manager who was responsible for one of Toyota's Lexus' brand's cars. These cars have been selling very well for a long time and have been very respected in the marketplace. However, it looks like things are starting to change and the big question is what should the Lexus product managers do now...?
Before we can talk about how things went wrong over at Lexus, we need to first talk about how they went so very right. Back in 1990 Toyota, which had always been known for great low-priced cars, introduced its high-end Lexus line. The cars were well received and their legendary reputation for quality made them fly off of dealer's lots. At this time the other luxury cars, BMW and Mercedes, were struggling with quality and so Lexus really stood out.
In just 10 years Lexus became the best-selling luxury car brand in the U.S. At the same time it stated to contribute 50% of Toyota's U.S. profits. Not bad!
Product managers know that nothing ever stays the same. In the world of luxury cars this is especially true. The past year has been brutal for Lexus product managers. Things first started to go bad for them when Toyota had to recall some Lexus cars due to an unintended acceleration problem that appeared to be caused by faulty floor mats.
Things went from bad to worse when Japan suffered a massive earthquake on March 11, 2011. This caused Lexus plants in Japan to be shut down and this threatens Toyota's ability to sell enough cars to retain its #1 ranking in car sales volume.
Just to make the product manager's lives even harder, the Lexus models are starting to show their age. They were last "refreshed" all at once back in 2006-2007 when Lexus was making a big push into Japan, Europe and China. Now in comparison to their rivals, the Lexus products are looking old and dated.
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