Author of Popular Book on Toyota's Lean Business Model to Participate in Premier Auto Industry Conference Next Month

U-M Professor Jeffrey Liker is among key people slated to speak at Management Briefing Seminars

ANN ARBOR, Mich., July 13 -- When it comes to advising automotive companies in North America about how to succeed in a tough global marketplace, University of Michigan professor Jeffrey Liker wrote the book. In fact, his book -- "The Toyota Way" -- has become a surprise top-seller in the business management category just seven months after its release in early 2004.

Liker will be among the experts co-chairing a session at next month's premier conference for the automotive industry -- the annual Management Briefing Seminars. The five-day event is slated to take place from Monday August 2 to Friday, August 6, 2004 at the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa in northern Michigan, near Traverse City.

More than 1,200 executives from industry, government and academia are expected to attend the conference. An array of speakers -- including Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm and Toyota Motor Corporation Chief Executive Officer Fujio Cho -- will share their perspectives about how automakers and suppliers can navigate "the perfect storm" that looms ahead for the modern car industry.

Full details about the event, as well as registration information, are available online at http://www.cargroup.org/ , or via phone at (734) 662-1287 or (866) 374-6227.

Liker will co-chair a session on Monday, August 2 focusing on World Class Product and Process Development. He's expected to offer his insights about why many automakers and suppliers have fallen short in fully implementing lean cultures and lean processes -- approaches that were developed and promoted by Toyota. "Toyota is recognized as the leading automaker in the world, and other industry players would be well-served to emulate what the company has done with its culture, processes and people," Liker says. "U.S. automakers -- as well as some leading suppliers -- have succeeded in implementing lean tools, but there has been insufficient focus on creating the right cultural environments. There's no doubt that this is quickly emerging as a vital survival issue for the immediate future."

Co-chairing the conference session with Liker will be Richard Gerth, assistant director of the Manufacturing Systems Group for the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Center for Automotive Research (CAR). The Management Briefing Seminars conference is sponsored by CAR, in collaboration with the University of Michigan.

"The automotive industry is at an extremely critical juncture," said Dave Cole, CAR's chairman. "Given the situation that automakers and suppliers face, I see this year's event as a 'must-attend' event for those who seek viable strategies for navigating difficult times today, and surviving and growing in the future."

According to Cole, the Management Briefing Seminars conference -- now in its 39th year -- typically attracts "the leading thinkers, movers and shakers" of the global automotive industry.

Other confirmed speakers for the conference include: Jim Padilla, chairman of automotive operations and COO, Ford Motor Company; Jerry Elson, vice president and general manager, manufacturing & labor relations, General Motors; Hidetoshi Imazu, senior vice president, Nissan Motor Company; Tom LaSorda, chief operating officer, DaimlerChrysler Corporation; Don Runkle, vice chairman, Delphi Corporation; Dennis Cuneo, senior vice president, Toyota Motor North America, Inc.; Frank Horton, executive vice president, Cosma International; and Ed Zander, chairman and CEO, Motorola, Inc.

Seminar presentations on Monday and Tuesday of the conference will highlight manufacturing strategies and technologies for global competitiveness; solutions to product-development challenges; Six Sigma; information technology; product lifecycle management; confronting the challenges of building a major manufacturing facility; and manufacturing competitiveness. Sessions on Wednesday through Friday will focus on surviving "The Perfect Storm"; collaboration and rules of engagement in the automotive industry; advanced power technology; and purchasing.

The Management Briefing Seminars event traditionally provides participants with excellent learning opportunities, as well as the chance to network with their colleagues in various social and recreational activities.