Ford Motor Company Business Analysis Essay

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.

Ford Motor Company is America's one of the largest car manufacturer and seller. In year 1987 it faces an external business environment change in the form of new warranty policy announcement by its major competitors General Motor, which changes the current philosophy of warranty in U.S car market. This policy change may have implications not only on Ford’s sales and market share but also on various departments within organization (such as manufacturing, quality assurance, parts and service, and extended service plans) and their dealer network. In answer, Ford executives have to respond through a best suitable course of action by carefully analyzing the current market variables.

The goal of this consulting report is to analyze the strategy for General Motors. To start, a five forces analysis of the automobile industry was conducted. The five forces include the following factors: competition among rivals, threat of new entrants, supplier power, buyer power, threat of substitutes, and role of complements. Understanding the influence of each of these factors provides insight into the attractiveness of the automobile industry. Such an understanding is necessary for an effective critique of General Motors’ strategy for the future.

In April 2000, Ford Motor Co. announced a shareholder Value Enhancement Plan (VEP) to significantly recapitalize the firm's ownership structure. Ford had accumulated $23 billion in cash reserves and under the VEP would return as much as $10 billion of this cash to shareholders. In exchange for each share currently held, the plan would give stockholders one new share plus the choice of receiving $20 in either cash or additional new Ford common shares. Shareholders electing to receive cash would be taxed on these distributions at capital gain rates. Among other things, the plan provided a means for the Ford family to obtain liquidity without having to dilute their 40% voting interest (even though they own

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

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.

1. What factors contribute to the rapid pace of change in business? Is the pace likely to accelerate or decrease over the next decade? Why?

The amount of cash that Ford is carrying on its balance sheet is too much considering that additional money not used for the advancement of the company belongs to the owners of the firm, the shareholders. Having too much cash on its balance sheet will be a disincentive to Ford’s employees who consequently will feel not feel an urgency to perform and add value to the company. Notwithstanding the fact that the company is always on the lookout for acquisition targets even after already purchasing Jaguar Cars, Volvo Cars, and Land Rover in the past ten years, it is imperative that the company does not engage in such activities for the sole purpose of “empire

Profitability (performance) ratios are used to assess a company’s ability to create equity as compared to its debt and other appropriate expenses created during a particular time frame. A favorable analysis of profitability ratios will reveal that a company’s value is higher than a competitor’s value.

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.

With the implementation of Ford’s restructuring plan, Ford 2000, the company has set forth goals to compete with the expansion of foreign-based auto manufacturers globally. The goal of Ford 2000 is to continue to improve quality and reduce cycle times by finding ways to improve processes involving all stakeholders within the supply chain and the company itself.

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:

In this section we analyse the political, economical, social, technological, natural and legal environment of Ford Motor Company.

4) If you were Teri Takai, what would you recommend to senior executives? To what degree should Ford emulate Dell’s business model?

The company understands the risks for working with U.S. auto industry especially during the recession in 2008, so they venture out to produce four new business units to minimize it by looking into investing on early-stage opportunities.