Executive Summary

· One Team: “People working together as a lean, global enterprise for automotive leadership, as measured by: Customer, Employee, Dealer, Investor, Supplier, Union/Council, and Community Satisfaction.”

· One Plan: “Aggressively restructure to operate profitably at the current demand and changing model mix; Accelerate development of new products our customers want and value; Finance our plan and improve our balance sheet; Work together effectively as one team.”

· One Goal: “An exciting viable Ford delivering profitable growth for all.”

Ford Motor Company’s Vision Statement

Ford’s vision statement is “people working together as a lean, global enterprise for automotive leadership.” The company also explains, “Automotive leadership is measured by the satisfaction of our customers, employees, investors, dealers, suppliers and communities.” Thus, Ford’s vision statement has the following major points:

1. Global leadership-Ford’s leadership has the desire to become the top player in the automotive industry on a global scale.

2. Emphasis on stakeholders-Ford’s leadership believes that they must exhibit their concern for employees, customers, investors, and other stakeholders through the formulation and implementation of enhanced human resource policies and corporate social responsibility.

3. Lean business-Ford’s leadership focus in this area to bring about change in its operations was accomplished through its assembly line methods.

Current Objectives

The leadership of Ford believes:

…”the company should continue to develop and expand its business model, encompassing their core automotive business of making, selling, servicing and financing vehicles, while pursuing emerging opportunities in electrification, autonomous vehicles, and mobility services and solutions,” (Thompson, 2017).

Current Strategies

Ford is committed to impacting the world in a positively, and staying committed to being successful. Their investors, as well as other stakeholders, trust them to be responsible and transparent as partners in their communities (2017).

Ford has implemented policies and strategies that focus on creating value, continually improving standards of living and addressing a wide range of social, economic and environmental challenges in a changing world (2017).

With ethics and compliance as the foundation of all its business activities, its integrated governance systems and processes help them manage the different aspects of sustainability across their business, from climate change to product quality and safety, and from ethical business practices to managing their supply chain (2017).

The leadership of Ford believes it has done more and has gone further than any other company in the industry. The company has not wavered in its commitment to quality and continues to manufacture products that challenge its competitors. The company invests in research and development in order to find innovative ways to improve its products and to introduce new products that will be satisfying and affordable to consumers (2017).

Industry analysis

Competitors

The major competitors of Ford in the United States are General Motors and Toyota; globally we find them fifth in the industry behind GM, Toyota, Chevrolet (GM), and Honda. Ford remains competitive in its pricing when comparing vehicles in each class, and the company’s Taurus, in full-sized vehicle class, is considered very popular in the United States. Ford continues introducing

Products

The products offered by the company include midsized sedans, full sized SUV’s, with the full sized trucks being the market’s most coveted vehicle when compared to the competition.

Selling technique

Ford dealerships are how the company predominantly distributes most of its products and the majority of the company’s sales revenues are achieved through dealerships.

Market condition

In reviewing the market for the Company’s services and products we found that its competition is aggressive and stays in a competitive mode ready to combat new marketing methods introduced by Ford in order to keep Ford relegated to third in industry in the US and fifth globally. Enhanced business for Ford depends upon growing its market opportunities outside of the United States, and succeeding in acquiring smaller up and coming car manufacturers that offer quality products that will secure a market hold in all areas of the automotive industry.

Summary and Recommendations

It is obvious that Ford has a product that is of high quality, and their current strategies prove that they are a company that invests in its employees and considers all its stakeholders, which is proof that it is a company where profits are not the only determinant of success. Secondly, Ford has a solid mission statement that serves the company well, and their current objectives and strategies are in alignment with the mission of the organization. However, based on the climate of today, this team believes that Ford Motor Company needs to develop strategies to address the following areas:

1. Work on growing its sales to achieve global leadership, this would include identifying up and coming car manufacturers that have solid products but not the necessary financial means to produce and market their products.

2. Continue to partner with dealerships, but assist them in improving their selling techniques so that customers may have a “no pressure” buying experience.

3. Diversify its automobile and truck line up in order to become a stronger competitor in the global market.

4. Assess the internal capabilities of the company and identify internal weaknesses, including current leadership, to determine if there are factors that contribute to the company’s unsuccessful attempts to gain a competitive edge in the global market.

5. Review the financial performance of the company to determine if the company is stable enough to pursue acquisitions and mergers, implement new growth plans, and enter into new markets.

In short, the blue team believes that it is the organizational structure that must be the primary focus of our strategic analysis, as it is the inner workings of the organization that will carry it into greatness. We want to assure that Ford is prepared to address the challenges external factors may bring, as well as become a stronger company based on decisions that affect change internally. Lastly, since Ford wants to improve its market stance globally, a development of a contingency plan may be warranted. A contingency plan is more than being prepared to meet the challenges of a natural disaster. Having a contingency plan in place will aid the company in identifying all critical business functions, and will highlight ways to minimize losses (MindTools, n.d.).

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