Question:
Analyze the organizational environment, culture, and systems that support leading in a global environment. Apply best organizational practices in leading diverse teams through the improvement process. Integrate leadership skills and behaviors that foster the enhancement of professional leadership competencies. Analyze leadership skills used in decision making, conflict resolution, and addressing ethical issues.
Answer:
Introduction
Ford Motor Company was founded by Henry Ford in the year 1903 (The Henry Ford, 2016). Ford is one of the leading automobile manufacturers in the world. It operates its business in North America, South America, Europe, Middle East and Africa and Asia Pacific. Ford identifies sustainability as a business form, which crafts uniformity in value with lasting perpetuation and improvement of environmental, social and financial wealth. Ford strategizes the One Ford Plan to help the company to expand its four-point business preparations for the achievement of organisational success worldwide (Ford Motor Company, 2016). Apparently, its organisational structure and culture plays a vital role in securing the progress of the company in the long run, and thus, this paper aims at assessing the organisational culture and the structure in Ford, using different relevant theories.
Assessment of Organisational Culture and Structure
The culture of Ford gets reflected from its vision of making people’s life better by working together in the course of automotive with mobility leadership. Organisational structure of the company defines the configuration of its component and system of interaction. Ford’s organisational structure includes corporate hierarchy, regional geographic division and global function groups (Kalowski, 2015; Smithson, 2015).
Corporate hierarchy
Ford has a traditional hierarchy, in which the Executive Vice President reports to the company’s CEO Mark Fields and middle level managers deliver information to the Vice Presidents. Ford’s organisational structure follows the traditional top-bottom management system, which makes managerial control more effective. Therefore, the corporate officers play a pivotal role in representing the interests of the shareholders (Smithson, 2015).
Regional geographic division
Ford’s organisational structure has three important geographical regions, which covers the market of the world. These division of regions helps to integrate the business strategies of the company so as to accomplish the desired objectives. The divided regions are a) North and South America, b) Europe, Middle East and Africa, c) Asia pacific. These regions are headed by the Executive Vice President of the company (Smithson, 2015).
Global Function group
Ford has a functional group, which represents the precise business roles headed by the Vice Presidents of the company. Main functional groups include the global manufacturing and labour affairs, sale and service of global marketing, human resource and corporate services, quality and new model launch, global product development, government and community relations, global purchasing, communication, finance, legal and accounting (Smithson, 2015).
Change management in present organisational structure
Introducing and implementing change has become the real necessity of various business organisations to survive in the global market. Change management skills are very much important, to ensure competitiveness of the business. Crucial and important changes were thus initiated by the former CEO of Ford, Mr. Allan Mulally, to secure organisations interests amidst the global financial crisis (Dudovskiy, 2013). Accordingly, The Way Forward restructuring plan was introduced to keep an eye on the concept of ‘One Ford’ to focus on the core brands of the business. Mulally took an initiative of borrowing $23.6 billion in the end of 2006 by way of mortgaging the asset of the company as a ‘cushion’ so as to meet the future unpredicted events (Kaipa & Kriger, 2010).
This strategy helped Ford to overcome the global economic crisis. Changes also took place as a massive cost-cutting idea, which included the suspension of dividend to the shareholders. The changes were introduced in Ford to ensure a higher level of transparency and accountability in its operations and decision making procedures (Boston Common High Tech Network, 2016). A recent change has also been introduced in Ford with its environment friendly projects in order to reduce the risks of climate change. The company has come up with the idea of introducing sustainable technology and alternative fuel plans for stabilising the emission of carbon-dioxide. By investing $4.5billion, Ford has launched its electrified vehicles project and expects to introduce 13 more new models in the near future (Boston Common High Tech Network, 2016).
The current CEO of the company, Mr. Mark Fields, has also reintroduced the Mustang model car to rejuvenate its brand recognition. The strong leadership of Ford have always made an effort to make such changes, which benefits not only the company but also its employees. The leadership practiced in the company is more of a participative kind, which gets expressed with the words of Fields, who recently suggested that to gain success in work one must be surrounded with great people with new ideas. He also believes in listening more and taking risks in business (CNBC, 2016). According to Westley & Mintzberg (1989), this form of leadership can also be referred as a visionary approach to strategic management, which assures greater sustainability of the company. Under the leadership of Field, the company is expanding its business model to gain recognition in both auto and mobility sectors (Bielecki, 2016).
Company’s efforts in minimising the impacts of operations towards environment have been a key change in its business strategy for long-term sustainable development. By focusing on maximising efficiency and lessening waste of energy, the company is achieving corresponding improvements in green house gas emission. Ford’s goal is to reduce 30% green house gas emission by 2025 (Sen Gupta, 2013). Ford also provides support through its hygienic reasonable drinking water program. The company is heading towards the five-year plan of sending zero waste to landfills. Accepting change has thus helped it to overcome the challenges in the coming future. Implying that Ford’s structure and culture has remained quite flexible and open to implement and accept changes as a part of its continuous business strategy (Ford Motor Company, 2016).
Development objectives of the organisation to improve health
Committed in doing the right thing
Any company which grows is needed to ensure that ethics and compliances are maintained in the business practices. Ford is developing the ‘less-effort compliance’ idea currently, with the similar initiative. This approach has helped the employees to align with the organisational objectives. The company is working on innovative training and communication program as well, to communicate its corporate policy and the law effectively among its workforce. One of the tools it applies for this purpose is free mobile application, which is named as ‘The Right Way’ to help in putting key observance information at the fingertips of its employees. The application also provides answers to many questions with the topic, such as human rights commitment, the signs of human trafficking, harassment and discrimination and the severe policy of bribery and corruption (Ford Motor Company, 2016; Brazeal, Schenkel & Kumar, 2014). The policy letters and directives of Ford, which are incorporated into company’s code of conduct guidebook, establish the expectations of the employees and other stakeholders, who are working on the company’s behalf. Ford compulsorily runs the training course, which focuses on the risk areas, such as bribery and corruption, conflicts of interests and shielding personnel and company’s information. Any individual can report violation of laws to company’s human resource team via e-mail or using telephone through this networking program. Ford is targeting to re-originate its entire operations system into an e-business. As a part of this strategic plan, it has intended a unique management program for its high prospective middle managers (Ford & Hess, 2009).
Creating the great place to work
With the capable and motivated HR team, Ford is able to create an effective workforce with admirable work environment. Ford’s mission is thus to deliver creative workforce solutions in support for its One Ford Model. The company offers competitive compensations and benefits, challenging and rewarding works with a varied workforce and versatile product ranges. Ford provides a healthy and safe environment for its employees, contractors and visitors. By fostering its diverse workforce, the company is able to make everyone feel valued and respected in its organisational structure. Ford’s management, by engaging with the employees, gains a degree of efficiency in understanding the needs of employees and motivate them accordingly by practicing a participative culture. To meet the present requirements of the workforce, Ford is continuously standardizing and simplifying the company’s talent management methods. Training and development program of Ford has also been helping the employees to achieve their goals (Yang, 2014). By conducting the various learning programs, employees’ potentials can be highlighted with better accuracy. Ford uses the latest technology to sustain the flexibility and teamwork across its work force, which helps in the data collection and analytics on a worldwide level. For example, through its Genesis Pyramid program, the company has been able to integrate universal reporting, human capital analytics and forecasting and premeditated work planning more efficiently. The HR platform has also helped the company to better understand the needs of its people and enable a more effective decision making process (Corporate Ford, 2015).
Conclusion
Irrespective of strong competition in the market, Ford has been successful in dominating the automotive industry. With its innovative business strategies, the company would be a key player with long-term sustainability in the market. With the expansion of its innovative business ideas, Ford is leading from the front and maintains the organisational structure and culture in a way, so that the employees and customers are benefited as per their expectations, which in turn ensures better investment return prospects of its stakeholders. With various training and development programs, the company is continuously improving its quality standards and participation of the workforce, which makes them feel valued and respected in Ford. Ford, as an automobile dominator, not only focuses on the profitable conduct of its business, but also gives priority to serve the community by extending its financial contribution and volunteering the efforts around the world. With these virtues, Ford has been able to nurture a safe and healthy work environment for its employees as well as for the visitors under its facilities. Conclusively, Ford has been able to build sustainability of its business ideas and models, which have in turn contributed to its long-term maintenance of a positive environment as well as social and financial capitals.
References
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