Type: Discussion Board Research Design and Analysis Tue, 6/12/17 Assignment Details Assignment Description Course Comprehensive Project Collaboration in a business environment is a best practice that leverages the collective knowledge of the team assembled. Peer evaluation and support, provided in the spirit of continuous improvement and organizational success, result in higher quality deliverables than generally possible by the efforts of an individual. Please describe the process you plan to use to conduct research, identify findings, and develop the Comprehensive Project due in Unit 5 and present a preliminary outline indicating how you intend to organize the project deliverable.  Unit 5 project located below: Comprehensive Analysis of Ford Motor Company Name American InterContinental University Abstract Since its beginning in 1903, the Ford Motor company has gone through some phases to enable it to reach its current market position. The Ford Motor Company possesses a good supply chain management status that enables it to receive raw materials and sell its products to the domestic and international market. Its possession of 90 plants and more than 213,000 employees in three major regions of the world makes it manufacture $5 million vehicles yearly, generating approximately $100 billion. The market is highly demanding and possesses dynamic changes that affect automobile companies such as Ford Motor. The market also comprises of some challenging factors such as fluctuating prices of oil and petroleum, competition, and political instability among others that affect the operations of Ford Motor Company. The SWOT Analysis of Ford Motor Company influences the company to adapt effective strategies that save it from falling in the market. Developing the right approaches in the company’s operations makes it easy for the company to beat the competition and remain relevant. Comprehensive Analysis of Ford Motor Company Introduction The paper discusses the Ford Motor Company through an extensive and conclusive research. It uses the available public information about the company and its operations. It carries out an analysis of its products and services, and how it relates to the market. The paper discusses the relationship between Ford’s operations and the stakeholders found in its market (external and internal stakeholders). The stakeholders have a significant status in its operations as they affect the business operations launched by the company on them. Ford Motor Company is also affected by both its internal and external operational environment. The paper discusses the external and internal factors that affect its performance through SWOT (Strength, weakness, opportunities, and threats) Analysis. The paper also has a key focuses on the corporate strategy provided by Ford Motor Company to survive in the market. Ford Motor Company has come through a period of financial challenges to reach where it ...

1. Type: Discussion Board
Research Design and Analysis
Tue, 6/12/17
Assignment Details
Assignment Description
Course Comprehensive Project
Collaboration in a business environment is a best practice that
leverages the collective knowledge of the team assembled. Peer
evaluation and support, provided in the spirit of continuous
improvement and organizational success, result in higher
quality deliverables than generally possible by the efforts of an
individual. Please describe the process you plan to use to
conduct research, identify findings, and develop the
Comprehensive Project due in Unit 5 and present a preliminary
outline indicating how you intend to organize the project
deliverable.
Unit 5 project located below:

2. Comprehensive Analysis of Ford Motor Company
Name
American InterContinental University
Abstract
Since its beginning in 1903, the Ford Motor company has gone
through some phases to enable it to reach its current market
position. The Ford Motor Company possesses a good supply
chain management status that enables it to receive raw materials
and sell its products to the domestic and international market.
Its possession of 90 plants and more than 213,000 employees in
three major regions of the world makes it manufacture $5
million vehicles yearly, generating approximately $100 billion.

3. The market is highly demanding and possesses dynamic changes
that affect automobile companies such as Ford Motor. The
market also comprises of some challenging factors such as
fluctuating prices of oil and petroleum, competition, and
political instability among others that affect the operations of
Ford Motor Company. The SWOT Analysis of Ford Motor
Company influences the company to adapt effective strategies
that save it from falling in the market. Developing the right
approaches in the company’s operations makes it easy for the
company to beat the competition and remain relevant.
Comprehensive Analysis of Ford Motor Company
Introduction
The paper discusses the Ford Motor Company through an
extensive and conclusive research. It uses the available public
information about the company and its operations. It carries out
an analysis of its products and services, and how it relates to
the market. The paper discusses the relationship between Ford’s
operations and the stakeholders found in its market (external
and internal stakeholders). The stakeholders have a significant
status in its operations as they affect the business operations
launched by the company on them. Ford Motor Company is also
affected by both its internal and external operational
environment. The paper discusses the external and internal
factors that affect its performance through SWOT (Strength,
weakness, opportunities, and threats) Analysis.
The paper also has a key focuses on the corporate strategy
provided by Ford Motor Company to survive in the market. Ford
Motor Company has come through a period of financial

4. challenges to reach where it is today. The company has
employed some strategies that have influenced continuous
survival in the market about the competitors. The paper focuses
on the corporate strategies that the managers employ to beat the
competition and remain relevant in the market. The conclusion
session develops a summary of the content of study and gives
recommendations to create a clear understanding of the topic of
study.
Background Information on Ford Motor Company
Henry Ford, a prolific engineer, born by immigrant farmers,
established Ford Motor Company in 1993 after working for five
years at the Edison Illuminating Company. He acquired much of
the knowledge in gasoline engines through the Edison
Illuminating Company. The acquired knowledge and skills led
to the development of the Ford Quadricycle that possessed self-
propelled status. The above situation influenced him to establish
a motor firm known as Ford Motor Company. Henry lacked
enough funds to run and sustain the operations of its new
established firm. The company went into bankruptcy in 1900 as
it only produced 25 vehicles. Three years down the line saw
Henry reestablishing the Ford Motor Company which became a
major success. The company built its first automobile under the
Ford Brand. It invented and developed the Model T vehicle that
was shipped into the European market.
The vehicle experienced huge success in its new European
market with high purchases made on it. Ford Motor Company
has its operations controlled from its headquarters in Dearborn,
Michigan. Ford Motor Company has its operations found in the
manufacturing of automobiles and commercial vehicles. It has
its operations under the Ford and Lincoln Brand. The company
has generated over $ 100 billion due to the production of more

5. than 5 million cars on an annual basis. The Ford Motor
Company possesses more than 90 plants with more than 213,000
(Bayou & De Korvin, 2008).
The Mission and Vision Statement of Ford Motor Company
One Team. One Plan. One Goal refers to the vision statement of
the company. According to the management, the Ford Motor
Company refers to it as One Ford Mission. The vision statement
was established and launched in 2008 with Allan Mullay (Chief
Executive Officer). The vision statement has a focus on the
performance of the employees found in Ford Motor Company. It
states that the employees should perform and operate as a team
when it comes to the development of services and products. The
One Team statement shows the role played by the employees in
satisfying the needs of the stakeholders such as customers,
investors, dealers, and suppliers. The One Plan statement
focuses on the products and services restructuring to influence a
profitability status. Ford Motor Company works with the One
Goal Statement to define its profitability as a factor shared by
all stakeholders and also for the general growth and
development of Ford Motor Company.
The mission statement of Ford Motor Company possesses a
guidance status and serves as a response for the firm when it
comes to dealing with old challenges with a relation to market
risks. Some of the risks experienced in the past include
financial crisis such as the economic recession. The company
employs its mission statement when it comes to developing its
innovative products with high-quality status (Stock & Lambert,
2001). The mission statement enhances the togetherness spirit
and influences teamwork when it comes realizing Ford’s key
objectives. The company uses the One Goal and One Plan
statement in its Mission to improve the performance of its

6. business in the domestic and international markets. It also
enhances a spirit of market dominance to the operations of the
company.
Nature of the Automobile Industry
The automobile industry has gone through many stages such as
craft production, mass production, and lean production to
become what it is today. The lean and mass production have
acted as the last critical stages that have revolutionized the
management process found in the production and product-
development phase. The industry has experienced auto
production mechanization which has been a major
transformation. It has reduced the cost of production and
enabled faster development of vehicles. The production process
has and continues to serve the demands of the customers in the
market. The above status makes the automobile industry to
become one of the most concentrated sectors in the international
market. Many companies compete to offer quality and
innovative products and beat their competitors in their game.
Ford Motor Company, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Volkswagen,
Google, and Apple are some of the automobile and technology
companies that focus on creating vehicles that meet demands of
the market (Poczter & Jankovic, 2014).
The competitive status of the market influences it to have few
but active players with products that meet the satisfaction of the
customers. The top five players have acquired approximately
50% of the shares in the international automobile market. The
share has depleted by almost 5% in the period between 1998 and
2013. The shares have been taken by smaller companies that are
also trying to offer a competitive edge to the operations of the
large companies. The top five players in the automobile
industry include Volkswagen, Toyota, General Motors, and

7. Ford. Due to the high competition, the industry comprises
barriers of entry and exit (Kothandaraman & Wilson, 2001). The
above factor makes it hard for new players to get into the
market. The customers also possess brand preferences of the
existing companies.
The brand influences the decisive nature of the customers when
it comes to purchasing value. Heavy sunk costs related to exits
tend to exist. When Ford shut its plants in Genk, Belgium, it
had to undergo payments of approximately $ 570 million as
severance costs (Lobov, 2015). The industry also experiences
severe union and government pressure related to the closure of
unprofitable units. The automobile industry demands a lot from
the major players and factors such as capital, technology, and
resources’ access act as a key factor for success.
Analysis of the Organizational Structure and Internal, and
External Stakeholders
Ford’s organizational structure organizes the internal
stakeholders in a way that it influences a sustainable
environment for good business in its respective markets. It
ensures the configuration of Ford’s key components about
market adaptation. The organizational structure provides Ford
with high competitive status regarding its performance in the
market. The organizational structure comprises of internal
stakeholders arranged in the following manner: corporate
hierarchy, regional geographic divisions, and global function
groups. The corporate hierarchy has a relation to the
organization of the top-most positions in the company.
The two key stakeholders in the structure include the Chief
Executive Officer and the Vice Presidents who work as the

8. overall head and second in command respectively (Bayou & De
Korvin, 2008). The regional geographic divisions work in a
dozen of regions found in the international markets. The regions
include Middle East & Europe; Asia Pacific; and the Americas.
The Vice Presidents act as the key directors for the regions, and
they report to the Chief Executive Officers. The Vice Presidents
and the company's Chief Executive Officer works with several
employees from different departments found in the company.
Figure 1:
Depicting Ford Operations Organizational Culture.
Some of the key departments functioning in the structures
include Human Resource; Marketing, Sales, and Services;
Global Labor and Manufacturing Issues; Accounting & Legal;
Community Relations & Government; and Finance &
Communications. Ford Motor Company comprises of the board
of directors and shareholders, with controlling shares belonging
to the Ford family. They make important decisions regarding the
financial, administrative, and logistical operations of the
company. They also influence the board when it comes to
handling the various deals and expansion of Ford.
External Stakeholders
Ford Motor Company comprises of several external stakeholders
that either affects the company directly or indirectly. Some of
the few stakeholders include the government, the customers, the
international agencies, and the non-governmental organizations.
The customers are the key individuals involved in the purchase
of the vehicles manufactured and sold by Ford Motor Company.
The customers influence the revenues raised by the Ford Motor

9. Company at any given time as it depends on their purchasing
power. Low purchasing rate of the vehicles results in decreased
revenues for the company. The competitors such as Google,
Apple, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, and General Motors among
others. The competitors stated above manufacture high
innovative products that fit the demands of the market, and also
have an affordable status. They also compete with Ford
regarding the acquisition of the shares found both in the
international and domestic markets.
The government formulates regulations that may affect the
operations of Ford in its respective markets. Regulations on
taxes and corporate social responsibilities among other areas
may affect the financial operations found in the business
portfolio of Ford (Bieler, Higgott, & Underhill, 2004). The
international agencies and other non-governmental
organizations depend on companies such as Ford to lease
vehicles for them when it comes to their operations in different
parts of the world. Ford leases vehicles to organizations with
operations in several parts of the world such as in the developed
nations. The other stakeholders include the vendors who supply
the company with raw materials for its manufacturing process.
Ford Motor Company comprises of several vendors from
different parts of the world who provide different raw materials
for the different parts of the vehicles manufactured by the
company. Ford also has a policy of working with the
communities found in its operations to alleviate poverty and
other negative effects found in the community such as
environmental pollution. The company works with school
programs to improve education and also focuses on improving
standards of living in the developing nations.
SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and

10. Threats)
Strengths and Opportunities
Ford Motor Company possesses several advantages related to its
global operations and brand. The management carries out
research to influence the development of quality products in the
market. Ford employs its strengths and weakness to guide its
operations both in the international and domestic markets. The
strong brand image has a high competitive aspect that makes it
unique as compared to its competitors. The Ford Motor
Company occupies the fifth position in the international
automobile industry. Ford Motor Company possesses a global
supply chain that influences the acquisition of raw materials. It
comprises of a vast customers and dealership network for the
sales of its products/services. Another key strength focuses on
its high innovative products that adapt to the changing market
nature. The above-stated factors influence Ford Motor Company
acquire an increasing number of customers which facilitates
increased revenues originating from high sales.
The Ford Motor Company experiences growth and development
as a result of the various market opportunities. The company
possesses several advantages that influence it to expand and
reach other international markets. It needs to improve its
diversified and quality products to influence high demand from
the market. The products’ improvement influences it to improve
its ratings in the market (Kothandaraman & Wilson, 2001). Ford
needs to take advantage of its market share to bring
improvement to its financial ratings through an effective global
supply chain. It also can boost its revenues through the
reduction of the cost of production.
Weaknesses and Threats

11. The company possesses a limitation status due to its uncertain
status of its networked production facilities, unlike its
competitors. Toyota has a good global network that influences it
to offer a competitive market to the Ford Motor Company. Ford
closed most of its production facilities which acted as risks to
the operations of its business. Ford possess high prices
regarding its vehicle products as compared to General Motors
and Toyota. It possesses decreased status of production
processes that fit the dynamic market trends. The weaknesses
reduce its market share as compared to companies such as
Mercedes-Benz.
Ford Motor Company receives a threat from General Motors,
Toyota, and Mercedes-Benz because they possess competitive
marketing strategies and high-quality products. Apple and
Google have also manufactured driverless vehicles with high
innovative status. The driverless vehicles offer a competitive
advantage to the vehicles manufactured by Ford Motor
Company. The fluctuating prices threaten the products of Ford.
Strategies employed in Improving Ford Motor Company
Operating Process
Based on the analysis of the company, Ford Motor needs to
remain competitive and ahead of time in its operations to enable
it to survive the dynamic market.
Technological Improvement
As stated above, technological improvement enhances quality
performance. The company needs to formulate a good

12. technological platform via a sophisticated data analysis to
enable it to produce products that fit the changing needs of the
market. Regarding technological appliances and equipment in
its manufacturing process, Ford needs to employ the right
leadership possessing skills and technological know-how to
improve its operations. The management needs to combine
personal excellence and experience which influences a strong
analytical capability, leading to a cross-function process of
decision making. Team management plays an important role in
determining success and eliminating risks.
It enables the company to identify current opportunities and
offers a collaborative platform for developing decisions for the
company. Technological improvement influences the company
to make better decisions and manufacture vehicles faster. Ford
Motor Company failed in the past due to its lack of interest in
employing a diversified technological sector. Survival of the
company originated from its employment of virtual operations
aligned to its business objectives.
Formulating a Performance Standard for its Operations
The Ford Motor Company should possess a performance-related
schedule in all its business portfolios. The departments should
operate in a specific way to influence value based services and
products to the market and protecting the company from market
risks. The management should employ existing traditional
metrics related to cost, service, and capital (Stock & Lambert,
2001). The performance standards should align the company’s
needs and the satisfaction status of the customers found in the
market. The alignment of the above factors should have a
relation to the launch of new products, and the aspect of
reacting to volatile market through analyzing critical and

13. fluctuating demands.
The performance standards influence the acquisition of huge
market shares in comparison with the competitors. It also
identifies the needed skills for the management of the
company’s operations. It enables the management to identify
input price volatility status and manage it without a problem. It
also influences Ford Motor Company to produce and launch
products within a specified time frame.
Corporate Strategy Differentiation in the Operations of Ford
Motor Company
The company needs to differentiate its supply chain to improve
its corporate strategies. Cost leadership, superior services,
business status, and product have an application to satisfy the
needs of the customers. Ford needs to align the leadership in its
production and sales departments in its different regions of
operations for successful business outcomes. Availability of
data in the portfolios of the business ensures constant research
made on the market and the internal environment of the
company. The departments need to work with the senior
management concerning the needs of the customers. They
should also differentiate the operations of the company and
their competition status with other competitors. The
differentiation status also allows the management prioritize the
important activities and implementing them first ahead of the
rest.
Conclusion
Based on the research paper, Ford Motor Company has a stable
market position due to the several strategies that have enabled it

14. to remain competitive both in its domestic and international
markets. However, the company has also experienced a number
of challenges due to external and internal forces. Poor planning,
changing political sector, fluctuating fuel prices, and high
competition status are some of the few forces that have initiated
the challenges experienced by Ford Motor Company. The above-
stated factors and others should influence Ford to develop
strategies that improve the company’s components to influence
its business development.
Ford Motor Company needs to possess an alternative metaphor
to enable it to acquire a dynamic and competitive status
regarding its products and services. The alternative metaphor
aligns its business structure with the needs and interests of the
market, influencing it to acquire a huge market share. It also
influences the company’s market penetration in different
regions of the world. The management may acquire enough data
concerning the customers and the general market status to
influence Ford Motor Company to occupy the top most level of
the automobile industry.
References
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