Ford Motor Case Study

‘Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through it’

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.

Strategy is a set of complicated tactics formulated by the executives of a company directed towards the achievement of company’s goal (Salmela, 2002). It is about all the path ways that a company would follow to reach its ultimate goal. It is a company’s strategy which helps to identify what it does better than the other companies in the industries, which may be different from what it does best. For successful strategy formulation and implementation, a company should know the needs of customers and should have knowledge of its competitors. Through a good strategy a company would identify that opportunity which makes it different from the others (Thompson, 2005).

Ideas introduced in the article assist in understanding Ford’s current situation. Ford reported sharp falls in U.S. auto sales in May 2008. Sales of its most profitable pickups and SUVs suffered the most (“US Auto Sales Slide”). Some of the main

Actually, Ford is aware of the needs and likes of the customers, so the company offers them a variety of vehicles from fuel gas to electrical systems with financial plans to afford them. Through its attainable mission and vision, Ford shows customers how solid it is in the business. The Ford Foundation really helps people to continue studying, in finding a cure for diabetes and breast cancer, and in initiatives to preserve American’ heritage, in order to improve their quality of life. It is important to highlight that to be a successful company doesn’t only mean to get a lot of profit in revenues, get innovation, and improve technology; it goes beyond that. It also includes taking into account people. Therefore, Ford started in the business with a strong background, clear objectives, a solid vision and a solid mission that have allowed it to position itself in the place where it is; thus, its products and services along with the nonprofit organization it supports make Ford Motor Company become

Ford’s current mission statement is "We are a global family with a proud heritage passionately committed to providing personal mobility for people around the world." This is close to what it was in the 1960s; however with Japan closing the once thought insurmountable gap in sales American auto makers had to change. Japan had discovered a way to build smaller more fuel efficient and low-cost cars. American car manufacturers were still stuck on bigger and better as the American standard. As stated before Ford’s response to Japanese autos was the Pinto, a fantastic idea plan poorly executed. Ford knew the

Ford has had to face various challenges and current goals are to obtain the market share from its competitors and build the vehicles consumers are demanding. By meeting these needs, the company can redefine itself. With consumers trying to decrease their debt and an increasing number of competitors showcasing fuel-efficient vehicles, Ford needs to create affordable high quality and fuel efficient vehicles to remain competitive. An internal analysis of Ford Motor Company will evaluate its resources and capabilities. This analysis can aid in determining Ford’s cost position, competency, and competitiveness in the current marketplace.

Ford Motor Company has tough competition with European and Japanese manufacturers, therefore the company did not respond well and suffered

Ford Motor Company is considered a global automotive industry leader. Ford was able to reinvent themselves to be able to stay ahead of the economic downturns. Ford has continually improved their overall profit and recently started paying

Ford in 2011 is on the rebound, having recovered from the darkest hours in the late 2000s. The company for the company is that many of its competitors are also rebounding, and there are significant long-run changes in the automobile industry. Ford needs to determine a strategy that will take the company through the next decade, and improve the company's competitive position. The company has four of the top fifteen best-selling cars in America, but also needs to set strategy globally, as many of the best automobile growth markets are overseas. Another strategic consideration is that CEO Alan Mulally remains in the process of changing the organizational culture at Ford, which had become stagnant and unresponsive to the changes in the industry environment.

Ford Motor Company preserves its place as one of the largest makers of vehicles globally by making changes to its strategies. Ford needs to create a plan of action and ideas that react to the most substantial effects from outside divisors in the motor vehicle industry globally. The Five Forces analysis of Ford Motor Company recognizes the most significant outside elements and how they affect the company, rendering data that helps in management’s decision-making process.

Faced with an overwhelmingly complex situation, Alan Mulally has been brought in as Ford Motor Company's new president and CEO. As diverse global dynamics confront the company and competitive pressures continue to build, he has the challenging task of improving Ford's brand image and returning the company to profitability. Mulally has invited your consulting firm to advise his management team on restoring the company's reputation and viability. Assigned to the project, you have been asked to evaluate Ford's situation and prepare a report with the following content:

Alfred Chandler(1963) defines strategy as ‘ the determination of the long-run goals and objectives of an enterprise and the adoption of courses of action of an enterprise and the adoption of courses of action and the allocation of resources necessary for carrying out these goals’. And Michael porter(1996) sees it as ‘Competitive strategy is about being different. It means deliberately choosing different set of activities to deliver a unique mix of value’.

A strategy is said to be a plan that is made for the long term success of a product or brand. It is extremely important to have a strategy in order to figure out a direction towards which any company is able to focus all its resources efficiently and achieve desired outcomes. Formulating effective strategies is a considerably long process in itself that combines analysing several factors, situations and issues that are already present in a company and looking to improve on them alongside trying to implement various innovations and ideas to collectively create a direction towards which they can move and direct the resources available to them.

Q: 1 Why are Ford and GM entering the Russian car market now? Why did they not invest earlier, and why do they do not postpone investment until the market is bigger?