Sharp Corporation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sharp Corporation - Essay Example The founder played a great role in the establishment and maintenance of the company. His good timing provided the company a significant and profitable market share. The company was not a leader in a wide range of technologies, initially; it led only in a narrow section of the market. Also, it did not receive any benefit of financial backing from the zaibatsu conglomerates or the government. Hayakawa and his company were forced to produce devices for the military during the Second World War and was renamed as the Hayakawa Electrical Industries in 1942. The company re emerged after the war much damaged but still motivated to go on. The company has been through all the ups and downs in this long period but has not only sustained itself but has emerged as one of the leaders in electronic product market. Innovation and technological prowess along with diversified product portfolio has been the reason behind the success of sharp corporation behind its success. It is note worthy that the product mix has been kept changing so that they are not outdated and people expect more out of sharp products. This leads to investment in R& D and the cutting edge technology which acts as a driving force behind the successful sustainment of sharp as the leader in technology domain. The cutting edge technology combined with a never ending quest for creating newer products that have never been seen before has brought the company to where it is today. The spirit of creating new and innovative products has been the major driving force for the success of this company which has passed down over generations as the "DNA of creativity". The companies R&D works on the basic motto as mentioned by its founder, Tokuji Hayakawa, "make products that others want to imitate". In his words "products that get imitated are good products that consumers want; products that sell. Therefore, if you always try to come out with products that your competitors imitate, your company will steadily grow. Imitation gives rise to competition, raises the level of technology, and leads to progress in society" and this has been something what the company has been trying to do since its inception. Sharp attributes its success to the company's wide range of electronic products including the IMAGER series of copiers and networkable copier/printers ranging in speed from 15 to 50 pages-per minute and its solar panels (Sharp 2008) 2. .In what ways does being a Japanese company contribute to Sharp's success Sharp Corporation is a Japanese electronic company which was founded in the year 1912 by its founder Tokuji Hayakawa. The company initially started as a small metal workshop. The company was not a leader in the market at that time and had a low profile. Then the innovative product "ever sharp pencil" gave the company a boost in 1915. Slowly and steadily the company started to make more and more profit. It started focusing on innovative technologies and newer products. It followed two basic principles of "creativity and sincerity". The company started to make newer innovative products which people would like to imitate. In the year 1973, the company started focusing on liquid crystal displays (LCD) and then later on more lifestyle products were introduced in the market. Down the line Sharp