Inland Steel's joint venture: from competitive gap to competitive advantage

Inland Steel Industries Inc entered into a joint venture with Nippon Steel Corp in 1986 to gain access to new technology and to become competitive in the 1990s. The joint venture was prompted by Inland Steel's study on its international competitive position in the 1980s, which revealed that the organization had both a cost disadvantage and a quality disadvantage when compared to Japanese firms. Japanese corporations were able to produce and ship higher quality sheet steel at a 20% lower cost. Inland Steel then underwent a reorganization, followed by the creation of the joint venture. The success of the joint venture is attributed to common objectives, as well as each organization's need for the other.