Toshiba: The Future is Theirs In 1875 Hisashige Tanaka established Tanaka Seizo-sho, Japan’s first manufacturer of telegraphic equipment. The company thrived for over 60 years as an independent entity. In 1890, Hakunetsu-sha & Co., Ltd, was founded. It was Japan’s first manufacturing facility of electric incandescent lamps. Then in 1939, the two companies merged to become Tokyo Shibaura Denki. They were now an electric equipment manufacturer. The company’s reputation was established rapidly and they soon became known simply as Toshiba. They made this official with the name change to Toshiba in 1978. Throughout the company’s long life there have been many major inventions that have guaranteed them a place in history. Among these are the following world’s firsts:1. 1967—first automatic zip code reader2. 1970—first color video phone3. 1986—first laptop personal computers4. 1995—developed high-density optical disc, DVDThey have remained successful for many years because of their ability to stay on top of the world of technology. This is no small feat. Numerous companies have been lost because of a rapidly changing technology market that most were unable to keep up with the pace. With a resume of inventions spanning more than 120 years, a solid financial history and their status of being a multinational corporation, where does Toshiba go from here? Can they continue to keep up the pace of the past with the technology market changing more each and every day? What can they do to maintain their current level of success without compromising their values and commitment to the global society? To sum up all these questions: What’s next for Toshiba?Before looking at what the next step should be for Toshiba, it is necessary to examine what the driving forces behind the operation and all its decisions are. For them, The Basic Commitment is this force. In 1990 this Commitmen...
