Lincoln Electric Case Analysis
The Lincoln Electric Company is a successful business. They boast record profits, have remarkably low employee turnover, and have created an organizational structure that is both researched and respected. The have managed to do these things by focusing on key elements of their business: valuing their employees, having an open door policy, and creating employee ownership.
Valuing Employees
Lincoln Electric values its employees. They value their opinions and look out for their best interests. Not a lot of companies can say that. Not a lot of companies can say that they have an advisory board made up of workers who meet with executives biweekly to discuss employee matters. Lincoln Electric can. Not a lot of
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However, money does not always mean happiness. One study found that while a higher compensation package will help improve a company’s ability to attract employees, providing a good work environment is what retains the employees (Heather, 2003). That study suggests that the physical workplace was in the top three categories leading to employees’ job satisfaction and those who were happy with their work environment were more likely to be happy with their job than those who were not. This makes sense since for workers, their workplace is where they spend the majority of their day. Heather (2003) suggests that if a company can provide a work environment where people can be happy, then they will feel energized and valued and will want to stay with that company. He also says that a good work environment can increase employees’ creativity and motivation. Lincoln Electric has structured their manufacturing plant in Euclid, Ohio to be as efficient as possible. They streamlined the production line and made material storage and work station layouts functional.
Open Door Policy Lincoln Electric’s management practices an open door policy. They have never formally constructed an organizational chart. Management wants its employees to take their problems to the person who can solve them without regards to rank or the chain of command. Researchers
The strategy of Lincoln electric is known for its highly unique ideas for paying working according to the number of pieces they produced at works which means higher performance and productivity leads to higher pay roll. He believed in generating the best productivity and utilizing the company’s resources properly. A global organization is complex and has different task and requirement which needs different skills, education, experiences, knowledge and background. And that is why there is different kind of degree and education is available. Each major requires specific knowledge, like marketing, management accounting etc. the companies have segment in its organization also which divides the members into different groups each group have
Lincoln Electric Company has a very strong culture based on shared assumptions values and beliefs. This is evidenced by the attitudes of both the company management and employees towards the organization. The unchanged policies, practices and products point towards a very strong corporate culture. High employee performance and productivity over the many years of the company’s existence is also another indicator of a strong culture.
Lincoln Electric (LE) has been a producer of electrical and welding technology products since the late 1800's. The company remained primarily a family and employee held company until 1995, then approximately 40% of its equity went to the public. James Lincoln, one of the founders, developed unique management techniques that effectively motivated the employees. These management techniques were implemented as an unusual (for the era) structure of compensation and benefits called "incentive management". The incentive management system consisted of four key areas: factory jobs based solely on piecework output; a year-end bonus that could equal or exceeded an individual's regular pay; guaranteed employment; and limited benefits. Management
The Lincoln Electric Employees' Association was formed in 1919 to provide hearth benefits and social activities.This organization continues today and has assumed several addittional functions over the years.
Primary features of the Lincoln Electric business model and employment system are displayed through the company’s overall strategy, philosophy, compensations and benefits policy, leadership, and communication within and outside the organization.
Headquartered in Euclid, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, The Lincoln Electric Company is a world leader in welding and cutting products, as well as a premier manufacturer of electric motors. The company is well known for its dedicated, talented workforce and its superior technology. Lincoln Electric Company gives its customers total solutions along with a commitment to quality. Lincoln Electric Company is also well known for its incentive management system. Many companies strive to duplicate the success that Lincoln has enjoyed over the years.
Besides, managers in Lincoln Electric Company were not high in the sky, they worked and lived with workers in daily life, they had free atmosphere at work and they strengthened the feeling that workers were managing themselves.
Lincoln Electric has been on top in relating to the country’s culture of the United States. James Lincoln realized that treating people fair and realized their needs will sustain the company for the long haul. For an example, in 2008 when the United States was in recession, many major corporations laid of its employees. The feeling of discontent was high in the United States. However, Lincoln Electric did not lay off one person. Instead, the company lower their hours until the recession is over. Not only this method saved the employees’ jobs and it also sustain their morals and spirits.
Planning, Organizing, Leading, and Controlling are the four basic management functions. These four functions serves as a general guiding rule for every organization or company towards the attainment of desirable leadership style. Executives’ drive the company pursuant to its mission statement, employees should have mutual respect to one another, and the company should offer an acceptable compensation. Thereby working as one community for a crystal clear vision. Having read the Lincoln Electric Company Harvard Case Study by Arthur Sharplin, I would like to contextualize my evaluation into different perspectives. These perspective includes: Continuing influence of the founders, the golden rule, compensation schemes, open communication, and management style. Continuing influence of the founders of the company "The actual is limited, the possible is immense.” With this slogan that the company has, it actually reflects how profound the influence of the founders to the current people living in the company. It was very clear to my understanding that Lincoln treated everything and everyone as associates. Lincoln’s did not only focus on the profitability he could gain with his product nor the productivity that the employees could offer, the founders had an exquisite realization of building relationship with their product, customers, employees and business partners. The influence that Lincoln’s as founders created paved way through an inevitable inspiration that up until today, people
Lincoln Electric is a company operating with the sales of electric motors which was designed by John C. Lincoln himself, The company started off in 1895 when John C. Lincoln started the firm with an extremely low capital of only 200$. A few years later in 1907, John’s brother James decided to join the company Electric motors as a senior manager after just graduating from Ohio State Policies which has highly benefited the company as he introduced a series of policies under human resource and management which were innovative and new. In 1907 the company started to grow and decided to venture into new markets and diversify their production into Welding equipment as well, this has attained the company major success and in the year 1922 (Lincoln Electric, 2015) production of welding equipment and welding consumables has become the main business done by Lincoln Electric.
Elements of Lincoln Electric’s management system that made it so popular in the U.S. such as piece-rate work, bonuses, and
As stated in the assignment profile, Lincoln Electric is considered one of the best managed companies in the world. I believe this to be partially attributed to their hiring process. Lincoln Electric has strict requirements to weed through unqualified candidates who will not buy in to the company culture of excellence. This is an especially important aspect of their hiring process particularly due to the fact of leadership – a trait that plays a vital role in implementing and sustaining a company’s culture.
Lincoln Electric Company separated itself from the competitors for its innovative policies. For instance, hours were reduced from to 55 to 50 hours a week. Life insurance was offered to each employee. A welding school was created, which it still exists today. “An employee bonus” was contemplated but was not accomplished successfully. But until now, the employee bonus remains in the Lincoln management system. In addition, employees were empowered to form an association, which let to health benefits and other things. Furthermore, employees received two weeks of paid vacation and raises. These are the benefits that continue up to this day.
The Lincoln Electric Company has been built on clear and solid ethical principles. The reason for its centenarian success can be found in the fact that the ethic culture of respect and customer orientation fostered by its founder has remained unchanged. James F. Lincoln had a strong Christian background that guided his culture and vision. As he wrote, “The Christian ethic should control our acts. If it did control our acts, the savings in cost of distribution would be tremendous. Advertising would be a contact of the expert consultant with the customer, in order to give the customer the best product available when all of the customer 's needs are considered. Competition then would be in improving the quality of products and increasing efficiency in producing and distributing them; not in deception, as is now too customary. Pricing would reflect efficiency of production; it would not be selling a dodge that the customer may well be sorry he accepted. It would be proper for all concerned and rewarding for the ability used in producing the product” (Lincoln J. F., 1961. p. 64). The culture of the Lincoln’s brothers was centered on satisfying the customer’s needs. Their efforts were not devoted to increasing profits rather to a constant search for cheaper and more effective products that would improve customer’s satisfaction. For the Lincolns customers represented the reason for the company’s existence. He made sure that this philosophy permeated the company until the very last
AurtherSharplin wrote a case study on Lincoln Electric Company [1]back in 1989 to document their success and what led to it. The company was very successful at the time of this study and it is a well written document. The case study finds many factors for the success of the company which appears to have a truly altruistic approach to business. In my case analysis I will not only look at the positive and negative attributes of the company, but I will also look at modern available data to see how well has the company faired and compare corporate policy changes. Meeting with a company and discussing with its leadership its success is not the only factor which should be considered now that we have an additional 24 years’ worth of data. The