Ford Motors Company has been founded in 1903 by Henri T. Ford and 11 associates.Over the years, the company developed and expanded its automotive activities (design, development, manufacture, sale and service of cars and trucks). The Company had the credit in financing a wide variety of automotive products through automotive dealers to Europe during the 1960s and then to China between 2002-2003. But, by 2006, because of huge loss ($12.7 billion), the top management of Ford decided to start the "Way Forward Plan", which dealt with factories shut down, a focus on the main activities of the company, and also on innovations, in order to reduce costs and minimize losses.
Nowadays, Ford is still one of the Big Three Companies, i.e. the three main cars and trucks manufacturers in the US (with General Motors and DaimlerChrysler). Ford's brand portfolio has been reduced overtime: now, it comprises only Ford and Lincoln, since it stopped the production of the Mercury luxury cars in the year 2010. However, the company is still losing money: in 2009, Ford's total revenues suffered from a loss of $19 billion. That is why there is a strong need to adapt to the - then strategy of Ford, in order to be as successful as in the old times.
[...] Sport car This segment is a small niche. Just to know, the biggest market for sport cars is Germany. This segment's leader is: ⇨ General Motors Corporation, with over a quarter of all sales with its Tigra Model. Family car Finally, this segment is, as well as the executive cars' segment is a very small segment, with only 10% of the market. One of the dominant players is: ⇨ Citroën. STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENT This stage is to determine if our industry (the automobile one), is fragmented, does it have volume, is it a stalemate or a specialized industry. [...]
[...] Ford and 11 associates. All over the years, the company developed and expanded its activities, which are the automotive activity (design, development, manufacture, sale and service of cars and trucks) and the Ford Credit company (providing a wide variety of automotive financing products through automotive dealers), to Europe (during the 1960s) and then in China (in 2002-2003). But, by 2006, because of huge losses ($12.7 billion), the top management of Ford decided to start the “Way Forward Plan”, which dealt with factories closing, a focus on the main activities on the company, and also on innovations, in order to reduce costs and minimizing losses. [...]
[...] It has then a very strong Human Resources Management. Finally, with regard to the competencies Ford is looking to, they are mainly: Quality and skills. II. Capabilities: A) Organizational capabilities: What is Ford doing? ⇨ Reducing cost ⇨ Reducing greenhouse gas emission ⇨ Loss of $12.7 billion in 2006 (While Ford Europe announces a positive result) ⇨ The company is opening new manufactures all around the world ⇨ Raises cash The main example that we could point out is, recently, in 2009, the IPO that Ford made and the issue of 300 million shares explain those positive points thanks to the Core competences: ❖ Strong engineering capabilities ❖ HR Management ❖ Innovation B) Competitive advantage: What are our competitive advantages? [...]
[...] Besides, foreign competitors may enter the market where our company is, and so threaten it. SCENARIOS We can imagine two possible scenarios on a long-term perspective: a pessimistic and an optimistic one. |Pessimistic |Optimistic | |Economic difficulties: |End of the crisis: | |companies don't have the |companies find the right | |financial resources to |method to use their | |invest in R&D |resources and competences | |Cannot follow competitors |Predominance of green | |by developing ‘green' cars|trends | |Bankruptcy, merger |The company will choose | | |the right strategy to | | |improve its situation, | | |i.e. [...]
[...] GM wants to stay the leader in innovation. From 2009, the company has a new board of directors led by Edward Whitacre. It has several brands, such as, among the most known, Cadillac and Chevrolet. GM is already very well implemented: in North-America, Africa and Asia. Their Research & Development department was the first created in the automobile industry, in 1920, organized by Charles F. Kettering. Finally, they are really concerned by the environmental problems caused by this industry so they created and they are still creating electric cars to be able to sale eco-friendlier cars. [...]
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