During Toyota's highly publicized recalls of 2009 and 2010, the legendary carmaker's 60-year-old reputation for operational excellence was put under the microscope. Business pundits wondered out loud if Toyota's quality levels had decreased dramatically, while the harshest critics predicted the end of the company as we know it. For the most part, the government's findings absolved Toyota of serious defects and accidents, and Toyota recovered rapidly -- but mistakes were made, which showed that Toyota is not perfect. In fact, there is always opportunity for improvement in every process.