While most other automakers are pursuing hybrids and electric vehicles as the way to a more fuel-efficient future, Mazda is focusing on diesel technology. It’s a critical decision as the Japanese automaker works to transform itself from an underdog into a market leader.

The company announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show that the U.S. version of its Mazda 6 midsize sedan, which got a major redesign for the 2014 model year, will offer a new four-cylinder diesel engine, in addition to a conventional four-cylinder gasoline engine.

Though Mazda was upstaged in L.A. by all the hype around Honda’s new Accord Plug-In Hybrid and electric cars from BMW, Chevrolet and Fiat, offering a diesel engine in the Mazda 6 marks a significant milestone for the company. The previous version of the Mazda 6 did not give U.S. buyers a diesel option, and the 2014 model will be one of only two midsize sedans available with a diesel engine stateside, the other being the Volkswagen Passat.

When I walked into Fishbowl Inventory I immediately noticed something unusual for an office: happy people. The reception area features both a ping pong table and a foosball table—each was occupied by employees enthusiastically engaged in play (despite the fact that the ping pong players would obviously not be competing for slots on the Olympic Table Tennis team any time soon).

Dave Williams, Fishbowl CEO working on the Fishbowl Day of Service

I was interested in visiting Fishbowl, headed up by a former colleague and friend from the past and fellow Forbes Contributor David K. Williams, who has written about having a “no exit strategy” and encouraging employees to stay with a company for the long haul and what he calls “The 7 Non Negotiables.” Dave, and Fishbowl President Mary Michelle Scott, are iconoclasts who are reinventing the discipline of management.