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Description of ford motor company
Ford motor company business
Ford motors business strategy
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Ford Motor Company Introduction This paper will address an analysis of the key success factors in strategic planning of the Ford Motor Company including planning, product offerings and marketing and sales. The paper will also include financial characteristics and a competition analysis of the Ford Motor Company. Ford Motor Company The Ford Motor Company inspired a manufacturing revolution with its mass production assembly lines in the early 20th century. Ford and Lincoln are one of world's most well known automotive brands, most known for the Ford Mustang, and F-Series pickup trucks. Henry Ford incorporated Ford Motor Company in 1903 at Dearborn, Michigan. Ford Motor Company is known as one of the largest automobile companies in the world. (DATAMONITOR: Ford Motor Company, 2010 p. 4). Since 1980, Ford has been able to remove $5 billion from its operating cost (Brady, 1986, p. 8). The Ford Motor Company has around 181,000 employees and 65 plants worldwide using the automotive brands Ford and Lincoln (FMC Annual Report 2013, p.149). The company is broken down into the following segments: -Automotive Brand for Ford and For Lincoln *Customer Assistance -Financial Services *Ford Motor Credit Company -Customer Services *Service *Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center *Ford Parts and Motocraft *Ford and Lincoln Accessories *Ford and Lincoln Extended Service Plan (ESP) (FMC Annual Report 2013 p. 149). Planning Every successful company needs a competitive advantage. As part of our companies future they current successor team has researched various goals and strategies that will move Ford forward and allow them to be competitive in the changing market. “Ford must solve its nagging overseas problems and then "p... ... middle of paper ... ...ss Economics, 46(3), 167-170. doi:10.1057/be.2011.10 Knox, J. (2011). Ford and World Safety Leaders Work to Launch Intelligent Vehicles Quicker, More Affordably. Automotive Industries, 191(6), 26. Morningstar.com (2014, April 28). doi: http://financials.morningstar.com/competitors/industry-peer.action?t=F NASDAQ.com Schoenberger, R. (2011, January 31). Turning around an American icon, how Ford went from losing more than $30 billion to posting big profits. cleveland.com. Retrieved April 22, 2014, from http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2011/01/turning_around_an_american_ico.html Smith, D. C. (2000). Ford at $150 a Share?. Ward's Auto World, 36(6), 42. Wernle, B. (2012). Ford brand looks to move upscale. Automotive News, 86(6530), 19-1NULL. Wernle, B. (2012). Ford plugs into new segment with C-Max Energi. Automotive News, 87(6544), 16
Observed as a technological mastermind, Ford commenced experiments involving machinery from the time he was adolescent to launching his career working at the Edison Illuminating Company. He examined internal combustion engines and gasoline buggy ideas, eventually resulting in removing himself from Edison’s company and his introduction into the emerging automobile industry. Following in 1903, he established the Ford Motor Company, which expeditiously became a leader in the automotive industry and would gain extensive wealth within only a few decades. While other manufacturers strove to produce automobiles to be extravagant and luxurious predominantly for the wealthy, he immensely focused on efficient mass production of durable, affordable vehicles for the expanding middle-class market. The car should be like a fine watch," Ford said.
Prior to January 4, 1914, the name Ford meant nothing. The Ford Motor Company paid its employees $2.34 for a nine-hour shift, and in 1912 the company made a profit of $13.5 million dollars (Raff 181). Raff continues in his article, “Looking back at the Five-Dollar Day,” that the Ford Motor Company had an employee turnover rate of 370%: “50,448 workers had to be hired during the course of 1913 to maintain an average labor force of 13,623” (181). These
Until recently, the Ford Motor Company has been one of the most dynastic of American enterprises, a factor which has both benefited the company and has brought it to the brink of disaster. Today Ford is the second largest manufacturer of automobiles and trucks in the world, and it’s operations are well diversified, both operationally and geographically. The company operates the worlds second largest finance company in the world, and is a major producer of tractors, glass and steel. It is most prominent in the US, but also has plants in Canada, Britain and Germany, and facilities in over 100 countries.
Model T’s were everywhere in America, even long after Ford stopped production in 1927. (Henry) While Ford was the number one brand, selling the most cars throughout the early 1900’s, the Model T created a new industry that is distinctly American; the auto industry. Three manufacturers, Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler dominated the American auto industry, and all three companies still produce cars today. The Model T gave birth to the competitive auto market. To this day, car companies in America are constantly racing to innovate, improve, and outsell their competitors. Manufacturing of cars “became the backbone of a new consumer goods-oriented society. By the mid-1920s it ranked first in value of product, and in 1982 it provided one out of every six jobs in the United States.” (history –idk yet) The demand for cars also resulted in a booming petroleum industry, and a high demand for metals, like steel. ( History idk yet) Furthermore, with so many people driving cars, construction of roads was necessary. The popularity of automobiles set off a chain reaction that created new opportunities all across the country. All sections of the modern automotive industry, from marketing to manufacturing, as well industries like petroleum refining, steel production, and road construction, can trace their beginnings to the Ford Model
Achieving world class business performance is a major challenge in today’s society. Manufacturing companies continue to face increased competition and globalization from its competitors. (1, p. 148). The automotive industry is one of the most volatile manufacturing industries that we have, which was evident in the 2008 – 2010 automotive industry crisis. (2) This global financial downturn served notice to the American automotive manufactures to raise the bar, in order to achieve word class business performance. General Motors, one of the country’s largest automotive manufactures, had to receive a government bailout to survive. During this time many with the corporation asked themselves, if we were a world class business, would we be facing this pending crisis. The answer was a resounding “NO”. General Motors has come out of bankruptcy and is focused on being a world-class business organization.
With that in mind, their vision is to become the world’s leading consumer company for automotive products and services. By improving everything they do, the company provides superior returns to their shareholders (Vision, Mission, Values). Ford Motor Company's objective is to deliver a total return to shareholders in the top quartile of the S&P 500 over time”. The company will meet this goal by the transformation into the world's leading consumer company for automotive products and services, which will provide attractive dividend yields and growth in its share price (Ford Motor Company increases fourth-quarter dividend by nine percent). Over time, Ford's business strategy has responded to the challenges of the motor industry.
Despite of these good things, Ford Motor faced a loss due to some wrong decisions taken by the management regarding their business strategy. The decision of centralizing the management made them think narrowly which results in too much Americanization and ignorance of local market in the rest of the world. This caused losing global market for them.
Ford has the opportunity to both reach out to the customer and provide an experience customized to the preferences of that customer. Ford needs to be able to provide a high level of quality treatment both at the dealership and with on strong online web-presence that provides customization and pricing features for potential buyers to ensure high-quality customer satisfaction throughout the production process.
Ford had to change its conduct of business, restructure itself, and follow the technological trends that its main competitor, Toyota, has employed in order to regain its competitive advantage (Grant, 2010). Ford came into profitability by employing new technologies, reducing operational costs, and changing its culture, which has proven very successful (Grant, 2010). Moreover, today, it is still operating in the black and competing with the global automobile industry. Remain focused on efficiency Establishing a competitive advantage is important to survive in the automobile industry during these times of world recession and decreasing demand for automobiles.
Retrieved from the book Strategic Management and Business Policy: Towards Global Sustainability – 13th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Rightin, M. (2014). The 'Standard'. Tesla cuts losses but sees costly year ahead.
Ford- focused differentiation, medium pricing, breadth of product line is high. A strength is their pick-up truck market share, a weakness is perceived reliability and styling on some of the lines.
As they start their second century of business, they are now in a position to appeal to the widest range of potential customers. Each of their automotive brands has a unique personality and holds a distinct place in the Ford Motor Company family. Vehicle Brands Ford Lincoln Mercury Mazda Volvo Jaguar Land Rover Aston Martin AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE BRANDS Introduction Marketing orientation has become common in companies that make things for individual customers. It remains rare in heavy industry that produces steel, coal, oil, and paper, where the immediate consumers are other businesses. The transition from the production orientation to the marketing orientation is still ongoing.
Many economic factors exist that impact the development of Ford Motor Company's strategic plan and it’s no small task to project how some of these factors might change as the strategy is being realized. Consider the prospect of expansion into a new market like China or Mexico. Economic changes like currency devaluation will make Ford’s product more expensive to their target market potentially reducing overall sales revenue. Oil prices as we’ve seen in the U.S. economy can also play a big factor as large vehicles become less desirable and more fuel efficient compact cars gain market share.
With about 187,000 employees and 62 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands include Ford and
Ford is forecasting that 2010 sales in industry will rise to between 11.5 million and 12.5 million vehicles, up considerably from last year’s 8.4 million. Boudette, and Dolan, 2010). Ford is about to launch its smaller vehicles; less than two years ago Ford Motor’s plant in Mexico was building big pick-up trucks. But Ford has retooled to produce Ford’s small Fiesta car, due to go on sale in America for the first time in June. Simon, 2010).Mulally is the architect of Ford’s remarkable recovery in its fortunes.