...Title of the Case: Nucor in 2009 Time Context or Period: 1905-2009 of Nucor Summary of the Case: In 1905, Ransom E. Olds, creator of the Oldsmobile, had a dispute with stockholders and left his own company — Olds Motor Works. He soon formed REO Motor Company, which evolved into the Nuclear Corporation of America and ultimately, Nucor. In 1962, this was the year that Nuclear Corporation made two moves that would soon change the company and ultimately the American steel industry. First, they acquired a company called Vulcraft, an unassuming producer of steel joists and girders. Second, to run Vulcraft, they hired a man named Ken Iverson who would soon emerge as one of the great visionaries and mavericks in American industry. Barely staving off bankruptcy, Nuclear appointed Ken Iverson as its new president. He acted quickly to put the company on a course toward profitability including selling off inefficient divisions. Not long after we shed our conglomerate business model to become a highly focused steel producer, The board of directors elected to change the name of the company from Nuclear Corporation of America to simply Nucor. Since then, Nucor has contributed over 70 million dollars to Scholarships and Educational Disbursements. It is a source for millions of dollars for educational funding. To this day, every child of every Nucor teammate is entitled to educational funds from the company. Now, Nucor is one of the leading steel producers in the United States. Later...
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...University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics Theses 1-31-2007 Organizational Dynamics Programs Nucor Corporation: A Study on Evolution Toward Strategic Fit Regina Gordin University of Pennsylvania, regina.gordin@gmail.com Submitted to the Program of Organizational Dynamics In the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics at the University of Pennsylvania. Advisor: Everett Keech This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/od_theses_msod/1 For more information, please contact repository@pobox.upenn.edu. NUCOR CORPORATION: A STUDY ON EVOLUTION TOWARD STRATEGIC FIT by Regina Gordin Submitted to the Program of Organizational Dynamics In the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 NUCOR CORPORATION: A STUDY ON EVOLUTION TOWARD STRATEGIC FIT Approved by: ________________________________________________ Program Director ________________________________________________ Advisor ABSTRACT For much of its century long history, Nucor Corporation and its predecessors displayed turbulent financial performance. Several attempts at a strategic realignment proved unsuccessful, and in...
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...ASSIGNMENT #4: HRM ISSUES/DIVERSIFICATION STRATEGIES Introduction This paper presents the analysis of the Nucor Corporation case (Thompson, Strickland, Gamble, 2010, Nucor Corporation, p. C-193). Nucor is one of the largest producers of steel in the United States with a production capacity that exceeds 26 million tons. Nucor was among the first steel companies in the United States to use electric arc furnaces to melt recycled steel. In 2007, Nucor recycled nearly 10 million cars in its production processes, the equivalent of one SUV every four second (Nucor.com). Trends in the Steel Industry Steel Industry Trends are not at all static in this industry and is a very dynamic. The country that is producing the maximum amount of steel may not be in the first position in the coming years. Analysis of the Steel Industry Trends show that from the period starting from 1910 until the year 1960, the first position in terms of producing the largest amount of steel in the whole world was captured by United States of America. During this period, it was observed that almost half of the total steel production around the globe was produced by USA. However, the scenario started to change after the countries like Japan and China came to the fore. Again, in the recent years, India as well as Brazil has shown tremendous performance in the steel production side. According to the recent Steel Industry Trends, China is the largest steel producing nation. However, it has also been seen that the...
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...Nucor Corporation: Competing against Low-Cost Steel Imports Week 8 Assignment Bus 599 Nucor Corporation is today one of North America largest steel maker company. Although the company has a strong position in the steel market today, things have not always been as positive. According to Crafting & Executing Strategy, Nucor was first known as Nuclear Corporation of America, a company involved in the nuclear instrument and electronic business in 1950’s and early 1960’s. Facing bankruptcy, the company changed direction and decided to invest in the stable steel-joist business. The new name, Nucor Corporation, came along with the change in 1972 to break away from the nuclear image and embrace the new venture. This transformational change was due to the vision of new CEO and president, F. Kenneth Iverson. His strategic initiatives revealed to be a blessing as Nucor Corporation has been successfully growing since its creation. Discuss the trends in the steel industry and how it may impact Nucor’s strategy. The electric arc furnace technology was introduced in 1960. The “mini-mills” was limited when compared to integrated mills in the industry. In addition, the operating costs of companies are lower compared to integrated mills because they use electric arc furnaces that can produce various steel products to minimize production costs. (Thompson, Strickland, & Gamble, 2010). Nucor Corporation started using thin-slab casting during the 1980’s and it was their...
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... | NUCOR CORPORATION (A & B) As of 1999, Nucor Corporation( had been the most innovative and fastest-growing steel company of the last three decades. As an example of how a knowledge machine works, we see Nucor as a far more interesting company than, say, Andersen Consulting or McKinsey, because unlike professional service firms whose only output is knowledge, Nucor’s end product is steel, a tangible non-differentiable commodity. Yet, as we describe below, for much of the three decades from 1970 onward, Nucor had been a knowledge machine par excellence. Since the late 1960s the U. S. steel industry has faced numerous problems, such as substitution from other materials, foreign competition, slowing of steel demand, and strained labor relations and has reported one of the poorest profitability and growth records in the American economy. Yet, despite operating in a fundamentally troubled industry, during this time period, Nucor enjoyed an annual compounded sales growth rate of 17%, all generated organically. Furthermore, the company’s profit margins were consistently well above industry medians, and average annual return to shareholders exceeded 20% (see Box 1 for a business profile of Nucor Corporation). Nucor achieved this phenomenal and sustained success by excelling at a single task: creating and mobilizing knowledge in order to become, and...
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...NUCOR CORPORATION (A) 1. Why has Nucor performed so well? a. Is Nucor’s industry the answer? b. Is it the “mini-mill” effect? c. Is it market power (scale economies)? d. Is it a distribution channel advantage? e. Is it a raw material advantage? f. Is it a technology advantage? g. Is it a location advantage? h. Is it the result of an entrenched brand name? i. Is it Nucor’s choice of a unique strategy? j. Is it Nucor’s ability to execute its strategy? Ada beberapa poin utama yang menjadi faktor utama keberhasilan dari Nucor yaitu dari adopsi mini mill. Beberapa keuntungan yang diperoleh adalah: i. Teknologi tungku busur listrik, sehingga biaya yang dikeluarkan lebih rendah, dan bahan baku yang digunakan adalah besi tua sehingga lebih murah. ii. Lokasi di pedesaan sehingga biaya tenaga kerja lebih rendah iii. Produk berkualitas 2. What are the most important aspects of Nucor’s overall approach to organization and control that help explain why this company is so successful? How well do Nucor’s organization and control mechanisms fit the company’s strategic requirements? Struktu organisasi yang dianut adalah system desentralisasi sehingga keputusan lebih cepat dan efektif, tidak harus menunggu keputusan dari kantor pusat. Hal tersebut juga memberikan kemungkinan penurunan biaya karena keputusan dapa cepat dibuat dan diimplementasikan. 3. A crucial element of Nucor’s...
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...Nucor at a Crossroads MGMT XXXX-XXX Nucor’s Historic Performance, Competitive Advantage, and Five Forces Analysis With roots dating back to 1904 in the automobile manufacturing industry, Nucor’s business strategy has morphed many times over the course of the past century in response to struggling sales and unrealized business strategies. Since F. Kenneth Iverson’s appointment as Nucor’s President in 1965, however, Nucor has performed very well. With a focus on efficiency, Nucor is committed to minimizing bureaucracy and maximizing performance and productivity via the utilization of an open-door/continuous improvement/ entrepreneurial culture, a compensation scheme premised on performance-based incentives, and — last, but not least —commitment to technological advancement. With this approach, in an industry with 36 different companies, Nucor enjoyed the second largest market share in 1986, with 16 plants and an annual production capacity of 2.1 million tons of steel. In 1985, Nucor was ranked the most productive steel-maker in the United States and the second most productive in the world, averaging 981 tons per employee, per year. Nucor managed to achieve this success using a low-cost strategy, which proved to be particularly suitable in the highly competitive, commodity-like steel industry. Despite its positive performance, competition in the U.S. steel industry was keen in 1986. At that time, the industry had sustained seven straights years of decreasing domestic...
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...University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics Theses 1-31-2007 Organizational Dynamics Programs Nucor Corporation: A Study on Evolution Toward Strategic Fit Regina Gordin University of Pennsylvania, regina.gordin@gmail.com Submitted to the Program of Organizational Dynamics In the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics at the University of Pennsylvania. Advisor: Everett Keech This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/od_theses_msod/1 For more information, please contact repository@pobox.upenn.edu. NUCOR CORPORATION: A STUDY ON EVOLUTION TOWARD STRATEGIC FIT by Regina Gordin Submitted to the Program of Organizational Dynamics In the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 NUCOR CORPORATION: A STUDY ON EVOLUTION TOWARD STRATEGIC FIT Approved by: ________________________________________________ Program Director ________________________________________________ Advisor ABSTRACT For much of its century long history, Nucor Corporation and its predecessors displayed turbulent financial performance. Several attempts at a strategic realignment proved unsuccessful, and in...
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...(Ken Iverson & Nucor Company Culture) 1. Company Profile: Nucor is the third largest steel company in the U.S. that is ranked in Fortune 500 Company. The hierarchy of the organization is constructed by employees, supervisor, department managers or officers, general manager, and CEO (Chief Executive Officer). It is the first steel-mill in America that could make flat-rolled steel (high-end steel product made only by the Big Steel companies), to apply thin-slab casting (technology that Big Steel consider as impossible) and to produce iron carbide (efficient energy to produce steel through the scrap metal). In 1906, Ransom E. Olds was the first to establish the company which manufactures cars known as Reo Motor Car. After a while, the firm was sold because of its low profits to create the Nuclear Corporation of America (1955) by Reo Holding. The purpose of the new corporate was to manufacture nuclear instruments, electronics, and to perform radiation studies. In this context, the field was quite interesting and new but without any acceleration. As a result, the first purpose of the company was to acquire knowledge identified in other companies in metals business such as that of Vulcraft (steel joist manufacturing firm in Florence & South Carolina). 1. The Founder Values and Personality Ken Iverson (CEO) was the only person who tries to make an effort in order to overcome the obstacles that Nucor was encountering...
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...Tuesday, September 9, 2014 Nucor Corp A! Subject - Structure/Ops! • Decentralized ! - Distance between MGMT and ops! • Communication between top mgmt and supervisors?! - Autonomy for plant mgr - operated as an independent business! • Employees tell mgrs about their bad decisions — where is top mgmt? (no input/guidance)! • Too many risks?! - HR - People like working there! • Large labour supply! • Performance based pay, fairness! • Grievance reviews! - GM, then HQ! - Does HQ need to get involved?! • Annual dinners with GMs, monthly crew meetings, employee surveys! - Discuss any employee problems! • No layoffs! - Reduced workweek instead! - Compensation! • 1. Production Incentive plan! - Bonuses for workgroups (25-40 workers) based on anticipated vs. actual production! - 80-150% of base wage - BIG! 1 Tuesday, September 9, 2014 - Late - Lose bonus for the day, Sick - Lose bonus for the week! • 4 forgiveness days per yr! • Too harsh? Maybe not considering strong labour pool! - Supervisors and maintenance included! • No bonus paid of equipment not operating on that shift! • 2. Department Manager Plan! - Annual bonus based on ROA for the plant! • Target of 25%! • Average 82% bonus in recent years! - High?! • 3. Non-Production/Department Mgr Plan! - Accountants, engineers, clerks, etc! - Bonus based primarily on ROA for their plant! - Could be over 25% of base salary! • 4. Senior Officers Incentive Plan! - inc. Plant General Mgrs! - Based on return on shareholders’...
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...Issues/Diversification Strategies BUS 599 Strategic Management Conduct an Analysis of Case #10 Nucor Corporation and prepare a (4-5 page report). Discuss the trends in the steel industry and how it may impact Nucor’s strategy. The trend had been major steel production using blast furnaces. New technology using arc furnaces adopted by Nucor led to increased production and cost savings. The arc furnace technology took less labor, increased production, and was considered the new most cost-effective strategy among the steel industry. It was Nucor’s decision to adopt this process and be the first to introduce this new process to the United States. Many steel companies were going out of business due to reduced demand for steel and failing economies across the globe in the late 90s into the 2000s. Nucor chose to buy these failing plants when easily convertible to their production lineup. This also in many cases was a cheaper route than building new plants. The acquisition strategy proved to be essential as these failing firms were already setup for steel production at mass quantities and Nucor was able to inherit their ties and partnerships as well as their presence in their surrounding geographical area. The constant drive for efficiency and cost effective production was another strategy chosen to increase competitive advantage, market share, and ultimately become the number one steel producer among heavy competition. Discuss the organizational structure and management philosophy at Nucor. The...
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...HRM Issues/Diversification Strategies Global demand for steel expanded continuously throughout the 1960s, a demand domestic producers elected to not meet, choosing only to match domestic consumption requirements. This presented an opportunity for up-start foreign producers to strengthen themselves without directly competing against producers in the United States. Throughout this expansion, the relationship between management and labor soured. The Nucor Corporation broke into the industry with a workforce that consisted of farmers, mechanics, and other motivated workers. The company experienced various pains, eventually won community trust and respect within the industry. Trends in Steel Industry and how it may Impact Nucor’s Strategy “Due to growing demand for scrap metal, its cost has become increasingly volatile in the 1990s. In 1994, for example, prices climbed as much as $50/ton to $165-170/ton while 10 million tons of American scrap were exported to offshore customers. In 1996 prices reached $200/ton, and were expected to climb, but instead declined to $170-180/ton by the end of 1997” (Boyd & Grove, p. 6, 2000). Like many industries, the slumping global economy has significantly impacted demand in the steel industry as well. As the automotive and construction industries recover, the steel industry should begin to see a gradual upswing in demand. However, the steel industry will encounter difficulty trying to maintain growth revenues greater than 15% until other...
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...Crafting & Executing Strategy MGMT – 702-101 Nucor Case Study Instructor: James Farmer By, Arulraj Rajaram – 300729443 Strategic Management Date: 29th July, 2013 Page |2 1) Rolled steel is a commoditized product. Commoditized products are extremely difficult to differentiate and distinguish (in terms of marketing and sales methods) from your competitor’s products. Name and explain at least three strategies that Nucor Corporation has employed to differentiate its products and services, from its competitors. A) Nucor Corporation has employed various strategies to differentiate its products and services, from its competitors over the years. They have differentiated their products and services so well that they offer steel users with a wide range of steel products. The three strategies that Nucor has employed are: Low Cost of Production Strategy: Nucor constantly worked on attaining low cost of production by improving their production efficiency. Nucor constantly made investments in modernization of their plants, and new technology in the production of steel. They adopted automated technology that helped in fewer requirements of employees to operate. Thereby, increasing the productivity of labor and decreasing the cost. Nucor also employed electric arc furnaces and fewer production steps which lead to low energy costs. Also, the management system of Nucor was designed in a way that led to increased innovation by the employees and quick decision making. All these practices...
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...Implementation of the strategic goals of Nucor Corporation must be performed in an organized manner. Creating a detailed implementation plan will help the company maintain an approach that is aligned with its mission, vision, and corporate values. The goal of the following implementation plan is to educate employees on their role within the grand strategy and define the most important action items and functional tactics that will produce the strategic success. The most important aspect of the implementation plan is communication. Nucor Corporation employs over 200, 000 employees between all the Nucor mills, plants, service centers, recycling centers, and all other subsidiaries. . The large disbursement of employees requires the company to create a solid communication system to ensure that every person is on the same page. This will create synergy within the organization and will allow employees at all levels to work towards a common goal. The objective is to keep employees focused on functional tactics and make sure they are rewarded for their contribution towards strategic success. Employee compensation, such as raises and bonuses, will be restructured to directly correlate with strategic objectives. This will give employees specific action items that will provide an explicit set of instructions for working towards the success of the strategic plan. Functional tactics can be defined as the short-term choices that will move the company towards its mission. Setting a precise...
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...When a firm creates, formulates, and implements a strategy that adds value and competitive advantage that is a strategic business plan. A strategic business plan is the layout or outline that specifies how a firm is going to reach their plans or goals over a certain period of time. The plan can be very specific or very broad. It can focus on one part of the business, as well as a whole focusing on all functions within a company. This plan is important to an organization’s long-term success because it gives the company a direction or purpose in which to set goals and carry them out. A strategic business plan assists a company in providing products and services in a more efficient and effective manner. Without a strategic business plan a firm will have a difficult time maximizing the potential of its resources. New opportunities and key resources for growth or improvement will be limited or perhaps even missed. A strategic plan is important to both small and large businesses. I believe that for any company, no matter the size, it is equally important to have a strategic business plan in place. This will assist in understanding customer needs and be able to adapt to constant changes and new trends taking place within the company. With a successful strategic plan, a company has a great opportunity for becoming very successful. Innovation plays a key role in developing a company that has potential for growth and success. Innovation provides the company with ways to maintain a competitive...
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