Nucor Corporation 1995 Essay
Nucor Corporation 1995: after 30 years of success, what next?
The Nucor story is about how a nearly bankrupt enterprise became the most productive and profitable company in the U.S. steel industry. It is also a story of how the two top managers of Nucor Corporation set a standard of personal and corporate behavior that continues to inspire social and economic civility within and beyond U.S. borders.
The change in fortunes for the company began in the summer of 1965, when the new Chairman of the Board, Donald Lillis, asked the financial manager Sam Siegel to stay on rather than quit. Siegel responded with two conditions: appoint Ken Iverson president and himself, Sam Siegel, treasurer and secretary. The Board agreed, and the new top …show more content…
Many locations near local markets potentially allow the mini-mills to serve customers better and keep employees productive and satisfied.
5. Finally, mini-mill steel plants, once perfected, are profitable enough to allow construction of additional facilities with internal rather than debt financing.
As with the joist plants, Nucor’s mini-mill facilities would be constructed and operated at low cost, using incentives for employees.
Nucor deliberately chose to locate facilities in non-urban centers among states that had tax structures favorable to business and that would allow Nucor to remain non-union (Siegel, 2004b). The locations attracted the hard-working, goal-oriented people who Nucor sought out. The demanding nature of the work meant turnover was usually high in the early stages, dropping to near zero after the first year as employees made a commitment to dig in for the long haul.
By 1995 Nucor operated eight business divisions, all in the steel industry, with each division making the range of steel products indicated in the listing shown in the following Figure 2.
Figure 2: Nucor Divisions and Products in 1995 (source: The Nucor Story)
1. Nucor Steel (Products: Steel sheet, bars, angles, structural beams, plate-carbon and alloy …show more content…
The right technology was important, and Nucor people learned to perfect the technology supplied by others and, in this way, make it their own. However, more important than technology was that Nucor remain a place where people were treated fairly and with respect. Ken Iverson (1998) explained the relative importance of technology to the success of Nucor: “I’m often asked: ‘How do you explain Nucor’s success?’ My stock reply: ‘It is 70% culture and 30% technology.’ Without a doubt Nucor’s culture is its most important source of competitive advantage, and always will be” (p.75 and p.76). One person who mirrored the culture was Betsy
The Nucor story is about how a nearly bankrupt enterprise became the most productive and profitable company in the U.S. steel industry. It is also a story of how the two top managers of Nucor Corporation set a standard of personal and corporate behavior that continues to inspire social and economic civility within and beyond U.S. borders.
The change in fortunes for the company began in the summer of 1965, when the new Chairman of the Board, Donald Lillis, asked the financial manager Sam Siegel to stay on rather than quit. Siegel responded with two conditions: appoint Ken Iverson president and himself, Sam Siegel, treasurer and secretary. The Board agreed, and the new top …show more content…
Many locations near local markets potentially allow the mini-mills to serve customers better and keep employees productive and satisfied.
5. Finally, mini-mill steel plants, once perfected, are profitable enough to allow construction of additional facilities with internal rather than debt financing.
As with the joist plants, Nucor’s mini-mill facilities would be constructed and operated at low cost, using incentives for employees.
Nucor deliberately chose to locate facilities in non-urban centers among states that had tax structures favorable to business and that would allow Nucor to remain non-union (Siegel, 2004b). The locations attracted the hard-working, goal-oriented people who Nucor sought out. The demanding nature of the work meant turnover was usually high in the early stages, dropping to near zero after the first year as employees made a commitment to dig in for the long haul.
By 1995 Nucor operated eight business divisions, all in the steel industry, with each division making the range of steel products indicated in the listing shown in the following Figure 2.
Figure 2: Nucor Divisions and Products in 1995 (source: The Nucor Story)
1. Nucor Steel (Products: Steel sheet, bars, angles, structural beams, plate-carbon and alloy …show more content…
The right technology was important, and Nucor people learned to perfect the technology supplied by others and, in this way, make it their own. However, more important than technology was that Nucor remain a place where people were treated fairly and with respect. Ken Iverson (1998) explained the relative importance of technology to the success of Nucor: “I’m often asked: ‘How do you explain Nucor’s success?’ My stock reply: ‘It is 70% culture and 30% technology.’ Without a doubt Nucor’s culture is its most important source of competitive advantage, and always will be” (p.75 and p.76). One person who mirrored the culture was Betsy