Analytical Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Analytical Report - Essay Example Alexander Malcomson encouraged his own business partners to invest in Henry Ford’s recently established business which was mainly viewed with skeptcism by the public. It was only the efforts of Malcomson that allowed Ford to be registered as a legitimate business. At its first stockholders’ meeting, John Gray was elected as the company’s chairman while Henry Ford took over the vice-presidency. Moreover, the three initial starters of Ford would not long remain friends and partners. Subsequent disagreements led to John Gray resigning his post and Henry Ford taking over as president of the company. While Henry Ford was quite successful in managing the company, the real profits came with the outbreak of World War One. As a pacifist, Henry Ford joined other leaders in Europe in trying to avert the outbreak of war. Even though his efforts were unsuccessful, his reputation as a pacifist served him well when the Allied Powers turned to American car manufacturers for mili tary vehicles for the war. Ford’s phenomenal success would continue right through the First World War, but would start to wane before the Second World War because the company was being run as a personal fiefdom and not a multinational corporation. In addition, Henry Ford did not pay much attention to the needs of customers, but was more interested in building vehicles that were to his tastes. In addition, the great Depression suffered by America in the late 1920s affected Ford. To keep afloat, the Ford Corporation had to implement cutbacks and fire many employees. During the Second World War, Henry Ford would be criticized for allowing the Ford Corporation’s branches in Germany to produce war machinery for the Nazis; even though he also supplied engines for the Allied forces. Moreover, from a business point of view, Ford was merely trying to stop his German plants from being nationalized by Adolph Hitler. Ford suffered from low sales after the Second World War due to n ational economic issues as well as problems caused by internal strife, but still managed to remain afloat. To a great extent, Ford’s survival through the years has also been the result of financial assistance received from the American government during its worst crises. Today, more than a hundred years after the Ford Corporation was launched, it is the second largest manufacturer of automobiles in the world. Ford has been able to maintain its position in spite of issues such as globalization, and aggressive competition. In the early years, American car manufacture was basically the forte of Henry Ford (Geyer, 2011). Ford’s method of mass production was copied by many recognized industries of that era, and was soon also adopted by other industries around the world. Global Overview of Issue The Ford Corporation today has branches in Asia, Europe, Africa, South and Central America, the Middle East, and the Caribbean (Geyer, 2011). When Ford first launched operations outs ide the United States, the newly established foreign branches were only authorized to deal in sales and distributions. The economic integration that was brought by the initial episodes of globalization allowed Ford to be able to produce and distribute vehicles from 108 branches stationed across six continents (Geyer, 2011). Ford's operations in foreign nations