...FORD’S CEO ALAN MULALLY A NEW APPROACH TO DECISION MAKING 1.0 According to Rowe and Mason (1987), each decision style elicits specific traits and/or preferences. For example, the following decision making styles of analytical, behavioral, conceptual, and directive, respectively prefer specific facts, accurate and complete data, broad coverage of many options, and limited data that are easily understood (Rowe & Mason, 1987). Further, Rowe and Mason (1987) believe that style descriptors should be able to describe an individual’s mental predisposition, cognitive process, and problem solving ability. They also deem that the style descriptors can be contextually explicit—describing the environment in which the decision is being made (Rowe and Mason, 1987). These theorists describe four elements of an individual’s decision style. The four elements are: • Perception and reception to stimuli, • Capacity to handle information and to reach a meaningful conclusion, • Intuition or creativity to develop alternatives, • Dexterity to make a decision (Rowe and Mason, 1987). Rowe and Mason’s model provides general descriptions of each style through specific categories such as organizational fit, problem orientation, level of tolerance for ambiguity, technical concern, leadership, and major criticism. The general descriptions of each decision style are as follows: Analytical Style This style is characterized by a problem solving and intellectual orientation. These...
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...cash, Henry Ford started the Ford Motor Company, whose automobiles changed how the world moved (FORD, 2014). Ford’s history comes with great stories of success; however the recession that started in 2000, caused the Ford Motor Company to experience some down-turns. After ending his stay as President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Alan Mulally joined Ford Motor Company and helped change its path towards bankruptcy. This study will describe the team-building techniques and strategies used by Alan Mulally to transform the Ford Motor Company. Research was conducted on the condition the company was in when he took over and where it is today. The strategy used to establish the team and how the strategy was executed will be discussed. Also, rationale will be provided for other strategies that could have been used in a similar situation. Who Is Alan Mulally? Alan Roger Mulally was born in 1945 and is an accomplished business executive worth over twenty-three million dollars. Companies look to him for innovative ideas that will get them going again. After college he decided to join the Boeing organization as an engineer. Here, he was able to contribute to the different Boeing models; including the 777 project. He eventually moved up within his department due to his amazing contributions. The "Forbes" (2014) website notes that from March 2001 to September 2006, Mr. Mulally served as Executive Vice President of the Boeing Company and President and Chief Executive Officer of Boeing...
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... or they know someone who has. Henry Ford was known as an amazing innovator. Ford's history comes with great stories of success; however the recession that started in 2000, caused the Ford Motor Company to experience some downturns. After ending his stay as President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Alan Mulally joined Ford Motor Company and helped change its path towards bankruptcy. This study will describe the team-building techniques and strategies used by Alan Mulally to transform the Ford Motor Company. The research conducted on the condition the company was in when he took over and where it is today. The strategy used to establish the team and how the plan executed will be discussed. Also, the rationale will be provided for other procedures that could have utilized in a similar situation. Who Is Alan Mulally? Alan Roger Mulally was born in 1945 and is an accomplished business executive worth over twenty-three million dollars. Companies look to him for innovative ideas that will get them going again. After college, he decided to join the Boeing organization as an engineer. Here, he was able to contribute to the different Boeing models; including the 777 project. He eventually moved up within his department due to his incredible contributions. According to "Ex-Ford Ceo Alan Mulally Joins Google’s Board Of Directors" (2013-2015), "Notes that from March 2001 to September 2006, Mr. Mulally served as Executive Vice President of the Boeing Company and President and Chief...
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...Innovative Change at Ford Motor Company Keller University Human Resources 587 August 24, 2014 Abstract Since Alan Mulally took over as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Ford Motor Company the business has been transformed into a powerful competitive force in the global automotive industry. An examination of the company’s communications surrounding Mulally’s retirement and the appointment of Mark Fields as the new CEO demonstrate how Ford used positive and candid communications to overcome resistance to the change. Actions as simple as providing verbal and nonverbal cues have a powerful influence on how others perceive a change (Nekoranec & Fourrier, 2013). A proposed alternative communication plan, including the use of more communication channels with increased frequency, would have helped the company address some of the fear and uncertainty among stakeholders. An example of an internal memo is provided to show how the use of positive and supportive descriptions of the change can motivate stakeholders to act as change agents on behalf of an organization by embracing the change and recognizing their essential role in the process. Innovative Change at Ford Motor Company In the past few decades Ford Motor Company has experienced a series of disruptive changes pertaining to the company’s leadership. In 2006, the appointment of Alan Mulally as the company’s Chief Executive Officer prompted extensive changes within the company that served to transform the once struggling...
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...Alan Malally In less than one week, Alan Mulally will resign as CEO of Ford Motor Company after an 8-year run packed with achievements and an innovation track record that should be the envy of every executive today. When Mulally steps down, Detroit will lose a true innovation leader. Mulally’s turnaround of Ford will likely be studied by business students for years to come as an artful combination of needed financial belt-tightening, plus a cultural change that took the car and truck maker from the brink of bankruptcy to the forefront of growth in the U.S. auto industry. The cultural shifts Mulally put in place impacted how Ford’s teams were structured, how collaboration was fostered, and how innovation itself ultimately came to flourish under his guidance. From my perspective, Mulally joins top innovation CEOs AG Lafley (P&G), Jeff Bezos (Amazon), Steve Jobs (Apple) and Howard Schultz (Starbucks) as the five most significant corporate leaders of the last decade. Ford Motor Company President and CEO Alan Mulally. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) Ford Motor Company President and CEO Alan Mulally. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) Ford In Tough Shape Long Before the Great Recession When Mulally took over as CEO in 2006, Ford was in tough shape. It had lost a whopping 25% of its market share since 1990. The company held a huge portfolio of brands including Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin, and Volvo. But none of these brands was faring well, and each required major capital infusions...
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...culture to effectively reverse an organization that is in a death spiral. Alan Mulally has proven that he has the right ingredients as a leader and has proven it with his turnaround of Ford Motor Company during his tenure starting in 2006 and ending in 2014. Mr. Mulally was an accomplished leader that came to Ford in 2006 after completing a tour in Boeing as the Chief Executive Officer of the Boeing Commercial Airplanes("Allen Mulally", 2014). Setting the stage for success When Mr. Mulally came to Ford in 2006 the company was on hard times. Ford was reporting losses and was facing bankruptcy. Mr. Mulally quickly identified the main causes of Ford's hardship and devise a corporate strategy that address the four main issue he saw. Mr. Mulally identified that everyone from the leaders to the employees were not working together as one team. In addition Ford was not capitalizing on its intellectual property and deep automotive knowledge and skills. As if this was not enough to cause an organization to fail add to it the fact that Ford was building 97 different cars and trucks and was not turning a profit as a whole. Mr. Mulally developed a strategy that he dubbed One Ford which he used as a platform to ground his attacks on the issues that were plaguing the Ford company. Mulally’s One Ford innovation platform consisted of four main points: 1) bring all Ford employees together as a global team; 2) leverage Ford’s unique automotive knowledge and assets; 3) build cars and trucks that...
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...dollars all due to Alan Mulally team building techniques and strategies. Before Alan came aboard the company was at lost ends and almost at the point of going bankrupt. They were losing money left and right and no loner considered one of the top automotive companies. A lot of people didn’t think Ford could ever recover from there Billion dollar. In fact, Ford was even losing ground competitors for decades. It got so bad for The Ford Motor Company that in 2002 there was a plan to cute jobs and talk of pant closures. Something no one seen coming or was thrilled about. With talks of closing plants and job cuts that meant leaving 14 plants and 34,000 workers out of jobs. The plan eventually went into effect and led to closures of Ford’s plants in Brook Park, Cleveland, and in Toledo. The purpose of closing and laying off several employees were to cut cost to keep the company alive. By midyear, The Ford Company president and chief executive Bill Ford Jr. resigned and hired Alan Mulally. Alan Mulally served for several years as president and chief executive of Ford Motor Company. Alan came aboard with Ford September of 2006 and led Ford’s transformation into one of the worlds leading automakers known today. His mission and values were to guide Fords Auto Company in working together as a team on a fascinating vision; comprehensive strategy and persistent implementation of one of Fords plan to drive profitable growth for all the company’s stakeholders. Alan Mulally also strived to make...
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...The changes at Ford initiated by CEO Mulally, a former aerospace guy, have meant the difference between death for the automaker and merely being sick Almost 30 months after Alan R. Mulally left Boeing (BA) to become chief executive of Ford Motor (F), it's still easy to peg him as an industry outsider. Talking to Wall Street analysts in November, Mulally described the debut of the tiny, fuel-sipping Ford Ka at the "Paris Air Show" when he meant the "Paris Motor Show." Earlier this year, Mulally showed how he'd tried to stop appending an airplane doodle to his signature, but struggled to ink a car instead. "Rats. I still haven't got the car down," he said, in the "aw shucks" Kansas delivery that has become as familiar in Detroit as his off-the-rack blazers and shirts. Outsider CEOs have a decidedly varied track record. Some bring in their own people and impose a jarring management philosophy on a corporate culture, as Robert Nardelli did at Home Depot with such mixed results that the board pushed him out. Some are unsuited to running an unfamiliar business. Former S.C. Johnson CEO William Perez's 13-month stint at Nike (NKE) comes to mind. Others tread more softly and succeed, like Eric Schmidt, the former Novell (NOVL) guy who runs Google (GOOG). Mulally arguably falls into the latter category. Since arriving he has left most of the team he inherited in place and quieted talk that an aerospace guy couldn't run an automaker. Of course, Ford remains a very sick company. It lost...
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...Assignment #3 Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Alan Mulally is president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Company. He also is a member of the company’s Board of Directors. Prior to joining Ford in September 2006, Mulally served as executive vice president of The Boeing Company, and president and chief executive officer of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. In that role, he was responsible for all of the company’s commercial airplane programs and related services. Mulally also was a member of the Boeing Executive Council and served as Boeing’s senior executive in the Pacific Northwest. Mulally was named Boeing’s president of Commercial Airplanes in September 1998. The responsibility of chief executive officer for the business unit was added in March 2001. Previously, Mulally served as president of Boeing Information, Space & Defense Systems and senior vice president of The Boeing Company. Appointed to that role in February 1997, he was responsible for Boeing’s defense, space and government business. Beginning in 1994, Mulally was senior vice president of Airplane Development for Boeing Commercial Airplanes Group, responsible for all airplane development activities, flight test operations, certification and government technical liaison. Earlier, Mulally served as Boeing’s vice president of Engineering...
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...Running Head: Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company BUS 520 August 08, 2011 1. Discuss the role of leadership and how it can impact organizational performance. The role of leadership is the process of developing ideas and a vision, along with living by values that support those ideas and vision, and influencing others to embrace them in their own behaviors and making hard decisions about human and other resources” (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2010, p.25). Leadership is also accomplishing something through others that would have never happen if a leader was not involved. In order for leadership to impact an organization there would have to be ideas and values established that will energize others to follow ones lead. It is most essential that employees within organization are able to confine with the vision, ideas, and values of an organization’s leadership. Therefore, if the employees are not firm believers in an organization’s leadership, they will not follow the vision and values of the leadership within that organization, which will ultimately lead its failure. In order for organization to remain or become successful, their employees should not only believe in its vision, they should believe in its leadership well as. There are several ways that leadership can impact organizational performance, one would have to say that the most important element is when an organization can adopt a corporate...
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...Assignment #3 Case: “Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company” Quinisha Story Dr. Edward Olanrewaju BUS 520: Leadership and Organizational Behavior Sunday November 14, 2010 1. Discuss the role of leadership and how it can impact organizational performance. Leadership is defined as the process of developing ideas and a vision, living by values that support those ideas and that vision, influencing others to embrace them in their own behaviors, and making hard decisions about human and other resources. The role of a leader is very vital in a company. The ability of organizations to achieve their goals depends on the degree to which leadership abilities and styles enable managers and team leaders to plan, organize, control, influence, and act effectively. The leader must learn and handle the behaviors of employees, very knowledgeable of the company and its competitors and customers. The leader helps determine and set the tone for the company successes and failures. 2. Discuss Mulally’s leadership style at Ford Motor Company and provide examples of how his actions fit this style. The leadership style that Alan displays at Ford is the behavioral model of leadership which focuses on what leaders actually do and how they do it. He uses the selling style, the leader provides direction, encourages two-way communication, and helps build confidence and motivation on the part of the follower. He also models the Facilitate...
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...companies such as General Motors took the opportunity to make an advance into Ford's dominance. The company was reincorporated in 1919, with Ford and his family acquiring full ownership Henry's son Edsel served as president 1919-1943 and Henry's grandson Henry Ford II led the company 1945–1979, reviving its fortunes considerably. Its stock was first publicly traded in 1956. Ford acquired the British automaker Jaguar in 1989 -1990, bought the rental car company Hertz Corp. in 1994, and purchased the automobile division of Volvo in 1999. Later acquisitions included Aston Martin and the Land Rover brand of sport utility vehicles. Ford also owns a significant share of the Mazda Motor Corporation because of financial struggles at the beginning of the 21st century, the company sold off Aston Martin in 2007 and both Jaguar and Land Rover in 2008. Faced with an overwhelmingly complex situation, Alan Mulally was brought in as Ford Motor Company's new president and CEO. As diverse global dynamics confront the company and pressures continue to build, he has the challenging task of improving Ford's brand image and returning the company to profitability. Mulally was named the President and CEO of Ford Motor Company on September 5, 2006, succeeding William Clay Ford, Jr., who remained as Executive Chairman of the company's Board of Directors. Mulally began his career with Boeing as an engineer in 1969. Mulally was largely credited with BCA's...
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...Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Dr. Lu Leadership and Organizational behavior- BUS520 November 7, 2011 Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Discuss the role of leadership and how it can impact organizational performance In order for any company to succeed, there needs to be an effective leader to lead the organization in the right direction. The leader must be someone who not only knows about the company and where it needs to go but also how to take its resources (its employees, its equipment) and put it together to come up with a winning formula. The role of leadership is very important and the goals that a company wants to meet will not be attainable without an effective leader. A leader needs to be able to motivate and influence its employees. This is especially true in today’s down economy and highly competitive environment. The organization must look upon its employees to assess the playing field, formulate strategies, and unite organizational managers to work towards the common goals of staying in business, making a profit, and continuously improve market share. In essence, the primary role of a leader in an organization is to draw the road map for the organization to execute – often, this may involve some changes to the way it ran its business in the past. Therefore, the leader is the critical actor in drama of organization change to achieve the goals (Schneider, 1994). To initiate change, an effective leader, manager, director will need...
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...MGT 504 Management & Organizational Behavior Case Study Alan Mulally’s Restructuring of Ford Motor Company Alan Mulally’s Restructuring of Ford Motor Company Case Study Alan Mulally received an opportunity to turn around one of the most famous brand names in the United States. Ford was struggling; losing more than 12.7 million in 2006 (Nelson p558) and desperately needed a change. Alan Mulally took the challenge, and stated he would do what many thought was impossible at the time – make Ford profitable. He did just that. Mulally knew Ford had issues and the first step was to identify those structural issues. The issues included a wide variety of models and styles of automobiles. A work force that was not collaborating or communication to a high standard, hypercompetitive and relentless competition in pricing and sales, and possibly the most important was lack of accountability. With the development of his strategic plan of “One Ford” Mulally was on his way to the turnaround of one of the biggest automakers in the world. The first major act of this plan was to sell the Aston Martin division of the company and focus on the customer by building what they really want. By eliminating 70 percent of his vehicle models in fewer than four years, and cutting labor costs by 22 percent, Mulally was well on his way to achieving great success (Nelson p588). The direction Mulally took in approaching his goals of the One Ford was through understanding what was needed. The focus was...
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...This paper is about Alan Roger Mulally (born August 4, 1945), who is an American engineer and businessman. Mulally is currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Ford Motor Company. Ford, which had been struggling during the late-2000s recession, returned to profitability under Mulally and was the only major car manufacturer to avoid government-sponsored bankruptcy. Mulally moved to Ford in 2006. He had worked at Boeing since 1969. He had been chief engineer for development of the 777, and was later Vice President of Engineering for commercial aircraft. Mulally had no sales experience, and he was not a “Detroit car man,” much less a car man at all. He sold his Lexus after moving to Dearborn. What is most impressive is Mulally’s “results oriented” leadership style. His management is crisp and authoritative, although he defers to the firm’s design experts on the minutiae of the product lines. But on the big questions of the company’s past mistakes and where it’s headed, Mulally made key decisions that placed Ford in good stead. When Mulally testified before Congress in December 2008, along with GM’s Rick Wagoner and Chrysler’s Robert Nardelli, he announced that Ford would be able to survive the recession without a bailout. The Role of Leadership and How It Can Impact Organizational Performance Leadership is an art, and like other arts, requires discipline, good techniques and self-expression. There are some basic rules or formulas connected with an art...
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