The Legacy Of The Lincoln Electric Company Essay

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

The founders of the Lincoln Electric Company left a legacy of an organization culture that promotes high productivity through sound management policies which have stood the test of time. The exponential growth of the company after the death of James F. Lincoln was a direct result of the establishment of a rich culture mix based on values that were widely shared and accepted by the members of the organization. Management empowered employees to become part of the decision making process through the contribution of ideas through the Advisory Board which was elected by the employees from amongst themselves. Reward management systems and all the other artifacts of the Lincoln Electric’s distinguished strong organizational culture will be analyzed in greater detail in this essay.

Every organization has values and beliefs that define what they do and how they do things in the organization. These values have significant influence on how the employees behaves and the general performance of the organization – it is these set of values and beliefs, rooted deep in the company’s organizational structure that depict the “dos”, “don’t” and the “hows”, of the organization and these unequivocally represents the culture of the organization. This concept became popular in the 1980s when Peters and Waterman in their book: “In search of Excellence” presented the profound argument that, the success of any organization is inextricable linked to the quality of its culture. (Carpenter, M., Taylor, B., Erdogan, B. 2009 p183). The purpose of this paper is an attempt to analyse the impact diverse cultures played in the success of the Lincoln Electric Company.

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.

The founder, James F. Lincoln used his Christian upbringing as the basis for his vision of how he defined entrepreneurial success. The customers ' needs are first priority, the employee second, and the stockholders are last. Quality and cost efficiency are the two most important factors considered in their product engineering and manufacturing. The hierarchy is stringent, however, the culture of the company is greatly people-oriented. This company has a strong culture that is instilled in new employees from the beginning and continuously practiced by every member of every facet in the organizational structure.

Structurally, Lincoln electric appears to use a decentralized approach to management. According to (Draft, 2010), “decentralization relies on cultural values, traditions, shared beliefs, trust and an egalitarian spirit to foster compliance with organizational goals” (p. 548-549). Lincoln Electric also uses a lateral approach between management and employees to achieve organizational goals. Examples of Lincoln Electric’s decentralized approach include their open door policy, which is for all employees from the top to the bottom of the hierarchy, their no lay-off policy and their procedure of promoting

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.

Though, in reading the Lincoln Electric Company Harvard Case Study by Arthur Sharplin, add up to what I learned from chapter eight this week, I can realize the that the organizational culture is the cornerstone for the growth of any organization. The success of Lincoln Electric Company is due to the environment that is previously established by the Lincoln’s family. If we look at in the introductory of the Harvard case study, Arthur Sharplin states that “The Lincoln incentive management plan has been well known for many years. Many college management texts refer to the Lincoln plan as a model for achieving high worker productivity.” (pp. 1). This is to say that they have already set some policies to make the company what it has always been since its creation.

I think that Lincoln Electric (LE) should definitely has a production facility in India because of its growth and foreseen opportunities, but if I were LE I would suggest to enter with a local partner in order to gain knowledge and experience in how the country operates in terms of bureaucracy, labor, culture and so on.

3. Lincoln’s culture could not be imposed but must be nurtured. “Willis retained the existing managers of most of the acquired companies to take advantage of their local knowledge, but directed them to implement [underlined by author]Lincoln’s incentive and manufacturing systems [p 6].” While Willis appreciated the benefits of implementing Lincoln’s systems, he did not consider James Lincoln’s caveat that “All those involved must be satisfied that they are properly recognized or they will not cooperate – and

All the founders of the company had a great deal of continues influence on the positioning of the company today, form John C. Lincoln to James F. Lincoln. John C. Lincoln started it all and James F. Lincoln, who is the younger brother of John, took over the company to another level. One of James Lincoln 's early actions as head of the firm was to ask the employees to elect representatives to a committee that would advise him on company operations. The Advisory Board has met with the chief executive officer twice monthly since that time. This was only the first of a series of innovative personnel policies that have, over the years, distinguished Lincoln Electric from its contemporaries.

Elements of Lincoln Electric’s management system that made it so popular in the U.S. such as piece-rate work, bonuses, and

The Lincoln Electric Company is the largest manufacturer of welding equipment in the world. John C. Lincoln founded the company in 1895 and incorporated it in 1906 where he moved it “from his one-room, fourth-floor factory to a new three-story building he erected in East Cleveland.” (Sharplin, 1989, A Historical Sketch pp. 1.). In 1907 John’s younger brother joined the company and in 1914 became the general manager and vice-president. It is here where the company began to define its culture with James instituting an employee elected advisory board who would be tasked with keeping James apprised on the operation of the company. This committee was also to be the voice of the employees to the executive team, a practice that is still performed today with twice-monthly meetings. The incentive programs set forth in these early years have laid the groundwork for sustaining high production levels while engaging employees in the feeling of pride and ownership of their and the company’s success. Many of the original incentive programs have changed little over the years and they continue to influence Lincoln Electric today.

While there are several contributing factors aiding the Lincoln Electric Company to excel in creating a wonderful business culture, there is a constant evolution of progress. During its startup in 1895; the founder (John C. Lincoln) was able to experience moderate success and growth through the standard business practices of the day.