Tesla Case Class Recording & Powerpoint
tesla technology is __________ innovation
disruptive (bc tesla disrupted the existing market, did not create a new market)
traditional car companies were very in tune to incremental technology (smaller cars, faster speed, cheap prices), but were oblivious to?
emerging technology b/c didn't want to give up current market
Sociocultural aspect of Tesla
- Demographics- aging baby boomers impact type of cars in demand; Gen Y - More info car sharing/mass transit. US: cities designed for cars; Europe encouraged fewer cars
Economic aspect of Tesla
- cycles with large impact on durable goods (2008): oil prices; demand for alt energy
Technological aspect of Tesla
- focus of the case- alt energy; hybrid, electric batteries, hydrogen fuel, biofuels - auto companies monitor to see which tech will emerge as standard
primary activities of Tesla
- no car salesmen, no intermediary - market directly to consumer - change way we buy cars - keeping products limited, few models, to reduce costs - Elon Musk primary marketing leader (symbol?)
Ecological aspect of Tesla
- overlap with socio cultural attitudes toward energy. Biofuels w/ additional concerns for diverting food to fuel. Source of electric & hydrogen cells and their disposal
How to approach disruptive innovation, so, as an incumbent you aren't surprised by a new entry?
- play out there testing phase more - invest in smaller start ups/ or outsource innovation(put it in separate business unit & fund it)
Political aspect of Tesla
- strong US gov influence: $1.3B in hydrogen powered tech - tax incentives: 2003 commercial trick rebate; 2009 cash for clunkers, financial bailout for GM & Chrysler - local gov: mass transit investment
Tesla competencies
- structure: valuable, rare, costly to imitate, captures value (b/c gives people incentive to buy tesla esp with charging stations) - good manufacturing network & constantly updating software - Elon Musk: Valuable, rare, costly to imitate, & captures value
were there any other electric vehicles before tesla?
- toyota first mover into hybrid & they're still enjoying that - GM tried to move into the electric car space in the 90s, but had issues with battery & decided to fold the project
what coherent actions did tesla implement as the firm's guiding policy?
- use cutting edge robotics - secure steady supply of batteries - create network of charging stations - share tech - achieve economies of scale
what innovations (besides tech) did Tesla bring to the car industry?
- vertically integrated the entire car, from parts to charging stations (so tesla had more control over quality & timelines) - cultural shift (showing that electric vehicles can outpace gas cars) - force battery powered cars
Legal aspect of Tesla
- California 0 emmission vehicles, auto safety regulations, liability insurance
Case overview
- Elon Musk spreading himself too thin by being CEO of three different companies - clean car tech hadn't taken off until tesla arrived - car industry shrinking as a whole, GM&Chrysler had to be bailed out - traditional car manufacturing companies discovering that they may be cannibalizing own profits when creating new electric car tech
What were tesla's tradeoff?
only focusing on electrical vehicles, not combustion engines or hybrids. focus on niche market only
smart finances from tesla
tesla makes you pay for the car prior to receiving it, need to put an advance down & then you don't have to borrow a loan to buy car
Tesla vision vs goal
vision: accelerate the worlds transition to sustainable transport goal: zero emission electric vehicles that are attractive & affordable