How Maruti Suzuki Cracked Toyota’s Secret—and Outsmarted Bigger Car Makers

The production refinement system used by Toyota bears a strong resemblance to the approach adopted by Maruti Suzuki in India. During my month-long internship at Maruti Suzuki’s manufacturing facility, I spent much of my time analyzing their process design and facility layout. When Suzuki acquired Maruti, they implemented their own quality management systems across the company. This overhaul reshaped production practices, supplier relations, and system maintenance — a transformation that helped Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) rise to become the country’s largest automobile manufacturer.

Central to their success was an unwavering commitment to feedback and continuous improvement across every level — manufacturing, sales, and marketing alike. This focus on responsiveness and refinement established MSIL’s reputation for quality and customer satisfaction, all while delivering high-efficiency, low-cost vehicles. Applying a similarly structured approach to design can dramatically improve a designer’s output and workflow efficiency.

Like Toyota, MSIL refined their operations by engineering the shortest, most cost-effective routes for moving parts from raw materials to finished components — optimizing each step before final assembly. Their suppliers were held to the same high standards, expected to deliver punctually and maintain top-tier quality. Simple yet effective visual cues, like color-coded lights, guided workers on the shop floor, significantly reducing errors and enabling production speeds that even larger manufacturers struggle to achieve.

However, many companies falter not in understanding the Toyota system, but in its execution. A key aspect of Toyota’s method is its leadership philosophy: every manager is expected to have firsthand experience with the tasks performed by their team members — fostering empathy, humility, and practical leadership. This hands-on approach sharpens a leader’s ability to teach, anticipate mistakes, and guide their teams effectively.

Recognizing human fallibility and building systems to account for it is arguably the most valuable investment a company can make. By studying human error, organizations can design smarter systems, implement meaningful countermeasures, and target root causes of recurring issues. This culture of continuous learning empowers employees to address common challenges proactively.

What struck me most was how a relentless focus on organization and planning — bordering on obsession — directly translated into higher efficiency and reduced waste. This principle extends far beyond manufacturing or design; it’s a universal strategy. Knowing exactly where everything is headed, and ensuring it moves there by the shortest, most economical route, can elevate every aspect of an operation.