...Ford Focus: Environmental Analysis Exercise Introduction Henry Ford and 11 other associates established Ford Motor Company in 1903. Manufacture and distribution of their automobiles take place in 200 markets across six continents. The 2010 Ford Annual Report indicated that “throughout 2010 Ford continued market share growth in the car sector with high quality, fuel-efficient offerings bringing bold designs, multiple convenience technologies, comprehensive safety features and engaging driving dynamics” (pg. 7). In 2010, Ford had a net income of $6.6 billion, which was a $3.8 billion increase from the prior year (Ford Annual Report, 3). The 2000 model year was the first for the entry-level sedan, Ford Focus. “Focus represents the company’s highest-volume offering and production in three continents to eventually be sold in 122 markets around the world” (Ford Motor Annual Report, 2010, p. 1). Ford has directed marketing efforts for the Focus to 18- to 29-year-olds that are willing to spend roughly $13,000 to $16,000 on a vehicle. According to Edmunds.com “its affordable price, expressive styling and availability in multiple body styles have all contributed to making this one of Ford's most popular cars worldwide” (Ford Focus Review, 2011). The 2012 Focus has an MSRP of $16,500 for its 2-liter, 4-cylinder Sedan model. The Focus also comes in coupe and hatchback models. Ford has commissioned to perform an environmental scan assessing the potential demand for the Ford...
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...Lord Ashcroft International Business School (LAIBS) MA Marketing & Innovation Ford Focus Electric – The Future of Transportation Model Title: Marketing Design and Innovation Module Code: MOD001223 SID: 1236789 Academic Year: 2013/14 Semester: 1 1 Ford Focus Electric – The Future of Transportation SID-1236789 Cambridge Attempt 1 ANGLIA RUSKIN UNIVERSITY Assignment Coversheet Student Number: 1236789/1 FACULTY Lord Ashcroft International Business School ASSIGNMENT DETAILS Module Code / Occ / Year MOD001223 / C-1 / 2013/4 Module Title Marketing Design Innovation Module Element 010 - ASSIGNMENT 2000 WORDS To be marked by Submission date (by 5p.m.) 06/01/2014 Submission of this assignment agrees to the following: I understand that the piece of work submitted will be considered as the final and complete version of my assignment of which I am otherwise the sole author. I understand both the meaning and consequences of plagiarism and that my work has been appropriately attributed unless otherwise stated. I have not knowingly allowed another to copy my work. Mitigation – you have 5 working days after the deadline to submit a claim for mitigating circumstances. If there are matters or circumstances which have had a serious adverse effect on your performance in any assessment, you are advised to seek advice from a Student Adviser. Forms are available from the iCentre. WORD COUNT Disk included (tick) ASSESSMENT...
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...Introduction For our focus group, we were able to find 7 individuals who were willing to participate and share their thoughts on the automobile industry. We had a diverse group, with participants from China and India, as well as a couple Canadians. This gave us lots of helpful data from people who were brought up in different settings and have different experiences with vehicles. We found our focus group to be very informative and it provided significant results and findings that we can use in our report. Some of the responses we were given to questions and discussions were predictable and as we expected, but others shed a new light on certain issues within our research that we think will prove to be extremely helpful. Moderator’s Guide Prior to our meeting, we needed to come up with a plan for our moderator as a group. We stressed the importance of making sure the discussion was natural and free flowing so we could gain as much knowledge as possible, but at the same time there were specific things we needed to ask our subjects to allow us to further our research. To identify the information that was necessary to gather, we first needed to establish what we already knew about our topic from our secondary research. After doing this, we devised a set of questions that would help guide our discussion and give us the results we were looking for. These questions were designed to be open-ended and general so our moderator would be able to steer the discussion, and at the...
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...Ethics and Credibility in Business Communications Kristen Barnes COM/295 March 27, 2016 Randi Barnes-Plante Ethics and Credibility in Business Communications Social Media can be an effective form of communication for business to consumer relationships. Not only does it allow the business to keep everyone up to date on the latest developments within the company, but it also allows the consumer to reach out to the business without having to make a phone call. We all lead busy lives, and being placed on hold for thirty minutes, just to have a simple question answered, can be somewhat of an inconvenience. With social media, that inconvenience is replaced with a few clicks of a button. After visiting Toyota’s Facebook page, the overall presence was mixed, for me. The company made multiple posts throughout the day; some were just for fun, and some were factual. After reading some of the replies, from consumers, those were mixed, as well. Some posts showed pictures of old Toyota’s, and how they’ve always been loyal customers. Others, were full of complaints. I believe that with any company, this is going to happen; but it’s up to the company to communicate and try to make it right. I noticed that Toyota was fairly prompt in replying to the negative comments, and would refer them to the customer service number. While I’m not certain what happened from there, they at least made the effort to let the customer know that their complaint was not something to take lightly. I...
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...Organizational Changes in Ford Motor Company Organizational Changes in Ford Motor Company In today’s business world, one of the questions organizations are inquired about is “What can be done in order for our organization survive and expand?” Today’s society is evolving into something too challenging to easily foresee, with a numerous opportunities and drawbacks continuously passing. Economic modifications continue to change the very fundamental nature of how an organization is conduct performs. A company must be able to acknowledge the course they face and be able to poise themselves to meet head-on any difficulties in order to accomplish the goals they settle on. In order to meet these demands is through systematic competent management and resilient leadership. Ford Motor Company is an organization that has endures this and has created outcomes that exemplify the power of operative management and precise leadership. The company’s ability to employ qualified managers and leaders has permitted the company to climb from previous low points to be primed for an optimistic economic future. Ford Motor Company, as an American manufacturer and distributor of vehicles and automotive parts and accessories, has confronted many challenges since its integration that required resolute management and qualified leadership. To better associate with the challenges the company faces an understanding of the explanation of management and leadership are required...
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...FORD MOTOR COMPANY: STRENGTHENING THE DEAL NETWORK Stefanie DiBella Professor Zeno MBAD 640 1/21/13 Introduction: In March 2011 David Kelleher and his team at Ford Motor Company came together to face the challenges that the Ford brand and their brand counterparts were facing: low marketability, competition of imports, high gas prices and of course an ever changing consumer market. “The Way Forward” and “One Ford Mission” was adopted to turn their focus to rethink how to target consumers, consolidate dealers and reposition the Lincoln brand. Analysis: 1)Chapter 7 discusses differences between the business market and the consumer market. Identify two differences that have a significant impact to the automobile industry and supply chain structure. Explain your answer using information from the chapter and the case. Because Ford Motor Company has developed a vast array of vehicles that can target a wide audience, Ford Motor Company faces the issue of understanding these two very different target markets: the business market and the consumer market. The two differences that can have a significant impact on the automobile industry and its supply chain structure; is the number of buyers in both markets, and fluctuating demand. Business markets make up a fewer percentage of the total number of sales for Ford vehicles however, the business market purchases vehicles with higher dollar amounts then consumer markets. I myself having witnessed this concept of the business...
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...Case - “Ford Motor Company” Fred Baylor Principles of Management - BUS 302 Professor Khaki Weber October 31, 2010 The case creates four options to choose from. Discuss at least three criteria the company should use to decide which of the four listed options is best and the reasons why each criterion should be used. Ford is a household name and has been around for over 100 years. Their slogan, “Built Ford Tough”, is engraved in the hearts of a lot or people, both employees and dedicated customers. In order for things to start to look up for Ford, they must develop a project plan that will work, but make the plan flexible enough to adapt if market conditions change. A solid project plan should include making certain that they are compliant with the United Auto Workers (UAW), so that jobs, benefits and retirement is impacted and falls under the guidelines that are in place. It will be impossible to make changes and this area not be impacted. The plan should include selling all or some of the products from their luxury car line, maybe not all at one time, but a gradual dissemination. The demand for luxury cars these days have declined and consumers are not sure if they have the value that they have had in the past. Lastly the plan should include extending their presences in the international market where they have been successful. Europe, South America, and China have been very receptive to the Ford vehicles...
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...Ford Motor Company Strayer University BUS 302 Professor Doreen Rainey October 31, 2010 Ford Motor Company located in Dearborn, Michigan has an alarming problem. Ford Motor has lost money in its North American sector of operation in the past years, despite its increase of models. In an attempt to attain a larger portion of the car market Ford Motor acquired some luxury models. Ford Motor moved some what away from Mr. Ford’s vision to produce cars affordable for the masses when acquiring luxury models. In order to reduce loses that are being acquired each year Ford must come up with a solution. There are four options that must be viewed to reduce losses. First is the reduction of older plants. Second produce only practical small cars. Third focus on the international market where Ford has been very successful and reduces it present in North America. Fourth dump the Premium Automotive Group (week 4, nd). Ford should use the S.M.A.R.T. guidelines, Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely (Management, 2011, p.79). Let’s take a look at the second option and view it with the S.M.A.R.T. guidelines. Ford specific goal using this option would be producing practical small cars to reduce the revenue lost. The American people are becoming more conscience of the rising gas price environment. SUVs and large car increase the usage of gas causing an increase in out of the pocket expense for personal vehicle. It is a proven fact that SUVs and large car use...
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...History Since the Ford Motor Company’s incorporation by Henry Ford in 1903, its strategic focus has remained on automobile design and manufacturing. Up until 1970, competition was from the two other manufacturers making up the Big Three Automakers; General Motors and Chrysler. However, starting in the 1970’s, foreign competition, mostly from Toyota and Honda, eventually lead to overcapacity within the industry. As more and more developing and industrial nations encouraged development into the automobile industry, overcapacity in the automobile markets reached an estimated 20 million vehicles. In 1995, in an effort to reduce cost and increase efficiency, Ford developed a restructuring plan called Ford 2000 that was to focus on globalizing corporate organizations and taking advantage of the economies of scale in purchasing and manufacturing by consolidating the North America, European, and international automobile operations. Ford 2000 also called for a complete reengineering of several key company processes including Order to Delivery (OTD) and Ford Production System (FPS). One of the primary strategic goals of Ford 2000 was to decrease OTD from 60+ days to less than 15. To help overcome information constraints in Ford’s new global approach, they launched a company-wide Intranet in mid-1996. In addition, Ford further expanded upon that system to include business-to-business (B2B) capacity by January 1997 which also comprised the Automotive Network Exchange (ANX)...
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...Ford Motor Company Manages Ethics and Social Responsibility Ford Motor Company, one of the “Big Three” automakers, was established in Detroit, Michigan, on June 16, 1903. Ford is one of the world’s top automobile companies—its Ford Focus was the world’s bestselling automobile in 2013. Ford Motor Company was founded on strong core values, which has helped it to overcome many obstacles and lead to its success. Despite ethical issues in the past, Ford Motor Company has proven to be an ethical leader in the automobile industry. In 2013 it was selected by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the world’s most ethical companies. Ford has a strong set of values, norms, and artifacts which it strongly enforces companywide. Its mission statement is based off the simple phrase: “One Ford: one team, one plan, one goal.” One team to Ford means that Ford employees work together toward a leadership position in the automobile industry through quality and stakeholder satisfaction. Along with its mission statement, Ford has adopted the vision: “To become the world’s leading consumer company for automotive products and services.” Ford Motor Company is committed to protecting health and safety. The Company’s Health and Safety Commitment states, “Our most valuable asset is our people. Nothing is more important than their safety and well being. Our coworkers and families rely on this commitment. There can be no compromise.” Ford Motor Company complies with the legal health and safety requirements...
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...------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Ford Motor Company Case Report ------------------------------------------------- Executive Summary Ford Motor Company has a long history, starting in Michigan in 1903. They have focused on designing and manufacturing and have been very successful, however with increasing competition, global markets and over-capacity the company needs to look at ways to improve profitability. The company has implemented various programs and processes to create a lean, responsive system with better consumer forecasting. Their challenge is to continue to research ways to stay viable in current market and industry conditions. Dell Computers has been very successful with a direct model and virtual integration that may or not work well for Ford. CONTENTS * ISSUE 3 * ANALYSIS 4 * ALTERNATIVES 6 * RECOMMENDATIONS 7 * IMPLEMENTATION 8 * CONCLUSION 8 * REFERENCES 9 * ISSUE: The Ford Motor Company is facing a number of challenges including the direction of CEO Jac Nasser to focus on customer responsiveness and shareholder value to deal with increasing competitiveness, an industry with potential over-capacity and the expansion into globalized markets. Ford had begun to implement systems to reduce cycle-time, improve quality and to lower costs. Programs included consolidating product development into five Vehicle Centres (VCs), reeingineered...
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...Case Study for Ford Motor Company Supply Chain Strategy Prepared by Student: Prepared for Instructor: This report is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the course Table of Content Subject Page Executive Summary ............................................................................... 2 Issue Identification -.......................................................................................... 3 Environmental And Root Cause Analysis.............................................. 3 Alternative And Options......................................................................... 5 Recommendation And Implementation.................................................. 6 Monitor And Control.............................................................................. 6 Reference ................................................................................................... 7 Executive Summary This paper evaluates and discusses the Ford 2000 project to reorganize its international operations in America, Europe, Asia and other locations for cost reduction. Following the evaluation, this writer finds that to implement and to proceed with Ford 2000 project and implement the information technology. As Ford will reduce the delivery time to 15 days and have direct relationship with supplier Tier 1, we will cut the cost. However Ford Motor Company is one of the...
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...position. Advantages and disadvantages of selecting internally and externally are also stated. Keywords Ford Motor Co., Coca Cola Co., recruiting personnel, internal and external hiring, basic criteria, hiring methods Introduction The Ford Motor Co. and the Coca Cola Co. are being used for comparison in this report. Both are internationally known and will prove to be an excellent example tool. They both has been around for a lot of years and have proven to be successful, economically as well as notable. Here stated are examples of internal and external selection methods and guidelines. Job specifications are listed and the requirements needed to fill the position open. Three Major Criteria The Ford Motor Co. has three major criteria used when recruiting people. They look at education, if the person can make decisions based on facts and data, and if they have the drive to seek growth and improvement. The Coca Cola Co. has three major criteria as well. Education, experience in the industry of consumer products, and the person's beliefs and value of themselves is reviewed. The Ford Motor Co. The Ford Motor Co. places the education status of the applicants highest and of most importance. Ford looks for the most highly qualified personnel and engineers. All management or supervisory positions personnel are required to have a Master's degree. Ford also looks for people who...
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...Ford Case Analysis Questions 1. Discuss Bill Ford’s actions using the steps of the basic control process as a model. Did he follow this process? What did he do in each step? Did he leave out any important steps? What is left to do? 2. Can Ford’s turnaround plan be characterized as tactical or strategic controls, and why? How are the actions and decisions of lower-level managers likely to be influenced by the plan? 3. How does the amount of control used by Ford’s credit managers affect control and performance in other areas of the parent company? 4. Thinking in terms of focus of control and amount of control, what caused the problems at Ford in the first place? Is Ford’s management proceeding appropriately in their attempts to improve the situation? Why or why not? 1. Bill Ford basically utilized parts of the basic control process as a method by which to improve operations at Ford Motor Co., but hasn’t fully embraced each element to its fullest potential. The four elements of the control process are establishing standards, measuring performance, comparing performance against standards, and evaluating results. Ford established standards throughout the company’s operations to cut costs in order to address the losses Ford had been incurring. His top priority was to adjust his management team so that the company was run more vertically, from the top down. Fine-tuning production to raise quality levels is an example of Ford’s new standards. Ford did this by...
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...Organizational Planning at Ford Motor Company Organizational Planning at Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company manufactures and distributes vehicles around six continents making it one of the largest automotive manufacturer’s in the world. The company has a strong market position as a result of its product portfolio that gives Ford significant competitive advantage in the marketplace. However, Ford Motor continues to strive to become the world’s leading consumer company for automotive products and services ("Sustainability Report", 2014). Achieving Goals To achieve goals, Ford plans to implement both strategic and operational plans that coincide with the company’s mission and vision for the future. Its main purpose is to improve its products and services to meet customer needs, and to provide a reasonable return to its shareholders. Strategic Plan Ford Motor Company has a goal of becoming an efficient global enterprise by using its new technologies on its global platforms. This will allow the organization to generate growth across its products and efficiency savings (“Global Round-Up,” 2011). Its focus is on sustainability and fuel efficient technologies. Ford recognized for its efficient use of natural resources, such as retooling its manufacturing facilities with energy-efficient equipment, and increasing the use of sustainable materials while eliminating undesirable materials and substances. Additionally, the company focuses on delivering...
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