Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company has had its share of success and failures over the years. In order for the company to remain competitive and relevant in today’s economy, Ford should actively anticipate threats and have a strategy in place that allows them to minimize impacts while capitalizing on external opportunities. Ford Motor Company is one of three major domestic automobile manufactures. They also own Volvo, Aston Martin, Land Rover, Jaguar, and Mazda.
Some of the external threats that face Ford Motor Company are the growing population of hybrid vehicles. Ford was the first company to roll out the first hybrid sports utility vehicle. Since then, multiple companies have launched their own hybrid vehicles and created much more competition throughout the hybrid market.
While Ford F-Series trucks have been the leader in industry sales for the last 33 consecutive years, the demand for these vehicles have dropped. Pickup and Heavy Duty trucks have been impacted by tightening regulations on emissions and gas mileage. Gas prices continue to rise and these vehicles consume more miles per gallon than most vehicles on the road. Many of these vehicles are used in production, primarily construction. Heavy loads and towing will cause these vehicles to consumer greater amounts of fuel. With the declining housing market in the United States, new home sales have dropped as well, thus leaving less of a need for these vehicles (David,2009).
Although Ford is a well known brand, product recalls have tarnished the companies’ good name. The National Highway Traffic Safety Association, (NHTSA), tracks recalls and Ford has logged over 20 million vehicle recalls to date (Ford Recall History Puts Toyota Recall in Perspective, para4). The recalls coupled with a weak dollar have allowed foreign competitors to gain market share.
Toyota also poses another external threat, as they are a non-union company. Ford and GM are affiliated with the UAW. The Union of Auto Workers contracts cost
Some of the external threats that face Ford Motor Company are the growing population of hybrid vehicles. Ford was the first company to roll out the first hybrid sports utility vehicle. Since then, multiple companies have launched their own hybrid vehicles and created much more competition throughout the hybrid market.
While Ford F-Series trucks have been the leader in industry sales for the last 33 consecutive years, the demand for these vehicles have dropped. Pickup and Heavy Duty trucks have been impacted by tightening regulations on emissions and gas mileage. Gas prices continue to rise and these vehicles consume more miles per gallon than most vehicles on the road. Many of these vehicles are used in production, primarily construction. Heavy loads and towing will cause these vehicles to consumer greater amounts of fuel. With the declining housing market in the United States, new home sales have dropped as well, thus leaving less of a need for these vehicles (David,2009).
Although Ford is a well known brand, product recalls have tarnished the companies’ good name. The National Highway Traffic Safety Association, (NHTSA), tracks recalls and Ford has logged over 20 million vehicle recalls to date (Ford Recall History Puts Toyota Recall in Perspective, para4). The recalls coupled with a weak dollar have allowed foreign competitors to gain market share.
Toyota also poses another external threat, as they are a non-union company. Ford and GM are affiliated with the UAW. The Union of Auto Workers contracts cost
References: Aston Martin. (2010, October, 24). In Wikipedia.com, Retrieved on October 24,2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aston_Martin Chrylser Corporation, (October 1,2010). 2010 Chrylsler Group LLC, Sales Archives. In Media.chrylser.com, Retreived on October 20, 2020 from http://www.media.chrysler.com/newsrelease.do;jsessionid=CB8CF1041991631C324AE4D231E19897?&id=9401 David, Fred R. (2009).Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Ford Corporation. (October 1,2010) Ford September Sales up 46%; Ford on track to gain market share for second consecutive year. In Ford.com, retrieved October 19,2010, from http://www.ford.com/about-ford/news-announcements/press-releases/press-releases-detail/pr-ford-september-sales-up-46-percent-33285 Johnson, Brian. (no date).Toyota and the Governement Backed Witch Hunt. In BIG GOVERNMENT.COM, Retrieved October 20,2010, from http://biggovernment.com/brjohnson/2010/02/17/toyota-and-the-union-backed-government-led-witch-hunt/ Levin, Mike. January 5, 2010. January 5).In news.pickuptrucks.com, Retrieved on October 20,2010, from http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2010/01/2009-year-end-top-10-pickup-truck-sales.html No Author Given. (2009). A Brief History of Lean. In Lean.org, Retrieved October 20,2010, from http://www.lean.org/WhatsLean/History.cfm No Author Given. (February 16, 2010). Ford Recall History Puts Toyota Recall in Perspective. In USRecall News, retrieved October 19, 2010, from http://www.usrecallnews.com/2010/02/ford-recall-history-puts-toyota-recalls-in-perspective.html Rana, Omar. (October 1, 2010). Ford, GM and Chrysler report September 2010 sales gains. In egmcartech.com, Retrieved October 20,2010, from http://www.egmcartech.com/2010/10/01/ford-gm-and-chrysler-report-september-2010-sales-gains/ Aston Martin. (2010, October, 24). In Wikipedia.com, Retrieved on October 24,2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aston_Martin