POWRE: Exogenous Shocks and Strategic Responses: Canadian and Mexican Auto Parts Suppliers Adjust to Free Trade and to Lean Production

自20世纪80年代末以来，北美公司面临着一系列对公司决策产生长期影响的事件。管理者的战略决策尤其受到以下因素的影响：贸易自由化（1989年加拿大-美国贸易协定）；自由贸易协定和1994年北美自由贸易协定)；精益生产技术的实施，如减少库存，提高产品可靠性，100%准时交货，以及公司内外更有效的沟通；宏观经济状况的变化，包括汇率和利率的变化；以及国内政府法规的变化，如加强环境标准和改进墨西哥的加工厂和PETEX规则。本研究的目的是确定是否存在应对这些经济冲击的最佳配置，包括技术升级、商业实体之间关系的变化、国际化和生产技术的提高。汽车零部件行业是这种分析的一个成熟的例子，因为该行业的公司受到所有这些事件的直接和间接的独特影响，因为它们的客户（汽车装配商）也在适应同样的经济冲击。墨西哥和加拿大的工厂受到的打击与美国的工厂不同。把重点放在工厂层面而不是公司层面是有意为之；工厂经理特别负责实施新技术和生产战略，他们在生产配置变化的本地和国际沟通中至关重要。调查和现场访谈方法都被用来调查工厂经理的看法，特别是关于自由贸易和精益生产对他们决定利用特定的战略反应的不同影响。利用实证分析来确定这些植物对外源冲击的“最佳反应”策略。此外，从调查中收集的数据应该揭示哪些植物特征与特定的响应策略一致，并具有快速适应外源冲击的能力。本研究提出的这些和其他问题的答案应该有助于决策者和行业分析师了解贸易自由化和精益生产对企业经济竞争力的独特影响。调查员目前正在休产假，并利用她两年休假的上半年来照顾她的孩子。在此资助期间，研究人员将从威廉姆斯学院休假的后半段。由于Williams是一所教学机构，所以她有机会在回到教学岗位之前完成这个研究项目并准备发表论文对她的学术进步至关重要。这个项目也为她提供了一个独特的机会，让她与其他主要研究人员合作研究北美自由贸易协定。

Since the late 1980s, North American firms have faced a confluence of events with long-term effects on decision-making at firms. Strategic decisions by managers were particularly affected by: trade liberalization (the 1989 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement and the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement); the implementation of lean production techniques such as reduced inventories, improved product reliability, 100% on-time delivery, and more efficient communications within and outside the boundaries of the firm; changes in macroeconomic conditions including exchange rate and interest rate variability; and changes in domestic government regulations such as tightening environmental standards and evolving maquiladora and PETEX rules in Mexico. The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is an optimal configuration of responses to these economic shocks, which spans technology-upgrading, changes in relationships between business entities, internationalization, and augmentation of production techniques. The automotive parts industry is a ripe example for this analysis, since firms in this industry have been uniquely affected by all of these events directly and indirectly, as their customers (the automobile assemblers) adjust to the same economic shocks. Mexican and Canadian plants are targeted for differently from their U.S. counterparts. The focus on the plant level instead of on the corporate level is deliberate; plant managers are particularly responsible for implementing new technology and production strategies, and they are critically involved in the local and international communications regarding changes in production configuration. Both survey and site-interview methodologies are utilized to investigate the perceptions of plant managers specifically concerning the differential effects of free trade and lean production on their decisions to utilize a particular strategic response. Empirical analysis is utilized to determine the `best response` strategy of these plants to the exogenous shocks. Furthermore, the data gathered from the survey should reveal which plant characteristics are consistent with particular response strategies and with the ability quickly to adjust to the exogenous shocks. The answers to these and other questions raised by this study should help to inform policymakers and industry analysts as to the distinct effects of trade liberalization and lean production on the economic competitiveness of firms. The investigator is currently on maternity leave and using the first half of her two-year sabbatical to care for her child. During the period of this grant, the investigator will be on the second half of her sabbatical from Williams College. Since Williams is a teaching institution, it is imperative for her academic advancement that she have the opportunity to complete this research project and prepare papers for publication before returning to her teaching duties. This project also presents a unique opportunity for her to collaborate with other key researchers on NAFTA.