Rocio Rodriguez
MGT/521 Management
May 25, 2011
Nickolas Skelton
Business Analysis Part I - Ford Motor Company Henry Ford and a group of investors founded what is known as the Ford Motor Company in 1903 based out in Dearborn, Michigan. The entrepreneur began manufacturing all of the automotive parts used in production and started the innovation of a moving assembly line to mass produce vehicles that are affordable to the public. Although the company changed names and investors a few times, it remained strong enough to survive through the great depression and become one of the largest auto manufacturers in the world today. The following analysis covers the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to obtain a better understanding of the successes and downfalls of Ford Motor Company.
Strengths
Despite of the recent downturn in the economy, Ford remains a competitive force in automobile manufacturing market. Certain factors exist that strengthen the company’s brand and product. For example, Ford Motor Company is the top 4th largest car manufacturing entity in the world (Ford, 2011). The company has 90 manufacturing plants worldwide, 7,000 supplier facilities that distribute vehicles in six continents, and all 50 U.S. states (Ford, 2011). Ford has a strong presence in the market and is easily recognized worldwide with the slogan “Built Ford Tough” as the company motto (Ford, 2011). The company keeps a competitive advantage by following innovative trends that attract the attention of more consumers. One of these trends focuses on fuel efficiency, brought on by the current deteriorating economic state. Ford’s fuel-efficient lineup increased sales by 19% since the launch in 2009 (Ford, 2011). Even the less economic models are still in demand because of their design, durability, and versatility. The Ford-F150, Ford’s most popular vehicle, is the current top seller on the market for this year
References: AOL Daily Finance. (2011, May 20). Ford motor company balance sheet. Retrieved from http://www.dailyfinance.com/financials/ford-motor-company/f/nys/balance-sheet Bloomberg Businessweek, (2011, May 24) Dow Jones, (2010, December 24). Toyota vice president: to hold down capital spending. Retrieved from http://www.dowjones.de/site/2010/12/toyota-vice-president-to-hold-down-capital-spending.html Ford Ford Motor Company, (2011, May 12). Safety. Retrieved from http://corporate.ford.com/innovation/car-safety Ford Motor Company, (2011) History of the Stock Market Crash, (2011, April 23). Ford stock up 757% since the 2008-2009 crash. Retrieved from http://www.worststockmarketcrashes.com/featured/ford-stock-up-757-percent-since-the-2008-2009-crash/ Isidore, C Legal Information Center, (2001). Firestone tire recall. Retrieved from http://www.firestone-tire-recall.com/pages/overview.html Media Ford.com, (2011) Microsoft Money, Initials. (2011, April 24). Financial results ford motor company. Retrieved from http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/invsub/results/statemnt.aspx?Symbol=F&stmtView=Ann Mulally, A Yahoo Finance, (2011, May 22). Ford motor company cash flow. Retrieved from http://finance.yahoo.com/q/cf?s=F+Cash+Flow&annual Appendix A[pic][pic][pic] |NET INCOME TO COMMON INCLUDING EXTRA ITEMS |-2,795.0 |-14,766.0 |2,717.0 |6,561.0 | [pic][pic][pic](Bloomberg Businessweek, 2011) (AOL Daily Finance, 2011) Appendix C |Period Ending | | | |Dec 31, 2010 | | | |Dec 31, 2009 | | | |Dec 31, 2008 | | |