-Competitive+Advantages

__**-Competitive Advantages**__

Harley-Davidson has an outstanding advantage over the competing companies such as Polaris and Arctic Cat, quality. With only 6,900 full-time employees(HOG 2011), Harley-Davidson is able to provide each and every motorcycle with an advanced personalized attention by each worker in the factory. Meanwhile, the competition at Polaris and Arctic Cat have less than three-thousand employees each. So while Harley-Davidson focuses on quality, Polaris and Arctic Cat seem to focus on quantity and low-cost manufacturing. After reviewing each companies profile, it is the case that Harley-Davidson allows their workers to reach efficiency in all sectors by providing a great environment to work, the correct tools, and enough time to work on the creation of these motorcycles. While in the other hand, it appears that companies like Arctic Cat with only 1,323 full-time employees(HOG 2011) seem to create a high stress environment that must make enough watercraft, motorcycles and other recreational vehicles to meet the demand of the United States.

Perhaps, one of the strongest advantages that Harley-Davidson has is being a listed member of the Fortune 500 companies. (Harley-Davidson Thanksgiving 2011) This means that it has a strong business background and foundation to keep building on and move forward. A strong foundation allows Harley-Davidson to build a strong marketing team and secure a strong distribution channel as well. All of these actions create a great business with great quality and that's what customers want. If customers rely on the strong image and goodwill factors that Harley-Davidson stands by, then Harley-Davidson will ensure the loyalty of its customers and that is exactly what Harley-Davidson works for. When you ask an individual what kind of bike is their dream bike, chances are the bike of their dreams will be a Harley-Davidson. This all creates a cycle that begins with the supplier and moves past the frontiers of signing the final deal at a Harley-Davidson dealership. The strong foundation that Harley and the Davidson brothers built has allowed the company to have an excellent relationship with the supplier, marketing, dealerships, customers, and makes a great name for the ONLY American brand manufacturer of heavyweight motorcycles, Harley-Davidson.