Ford Motor Company Analysis and Electric Vehicle Development

The assignment provided is an in-depth analysis of Ford Motor Company's efforts in developing electric vehicles, including its investments, plans, and strategies. The content includes references to several sources such as patents, research papers, articles, and news outlets. The document aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of Ford's approach to electric vehicle development and its impact on the industry.

Ford Motor Co management
report

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASKS.............................................................................................................................................3
Q1. Issues, problems and concerns by Ford Motor Co Management..............................................3
Q2. Justification of the chosen articles and the strategy used for searching....................................9
Description of search strategies..............................................................................................9
Most significant theory related article..................................................................................11
Most significant business related article...............................................................................11
Q3. Appraise sources of information.............................................................................................11
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Ford management report is based on Ford Motor Company that will launch 50 vehicles in
China by 2025. It will shift towards clean electric cars and review up sales growth in the market.
This company is thriving with Chinese quotas over sales and production and have faced weak
sales in recent years (Bohnsack, Pinkse and Kolk, 2014). Among 50 vehicles, 15 will be all new
and fresh electrified vehicles. There is an estimation of 50 percent growth in revenue in same
period. Auto makers are forced to make Hybrid and electric vehicles in 2019. They want to make
change from internal traditional engine cars. Therefore, this report will analyse critics, issues and
problems related to Ford Motor and competencies which it has to face in the future.
TASKS
Q1. Issues, problems and concerns by Ford Motor Co Management
Ford Motor Co Management would face many problems related to launching of EV
vehicles in the future. They could face issues regarding battery life of cars, creation, pricing of
electric and hybrid vehicles. Issues that organisation have faced are: -
1. Battery life of car:
Company have faced problem of battery in EV and hybrid cars. Car faces sluggish engine
and cranking when it is started. Due to slow engine crank cars take longer time to start. Engine
lights of cars became weak in many engines. This should be considered in future when cars are
launched in huge amount. When, drivers are not looking to drive then battery can do a lot of
things. Mainly it can drain overnight if power adaptor is plugged in or light is put on. It zaps
complete battery power and drains up battery (Burkert, 2017). Many other factors are there
which affect battery life of cars such as short trips and extreme temperature. Freezing and hot
temperatures shorten up its life. Civic battery used by Ford is less energetic and its petrol engine
is harder still. This issue has to be resolved by the company. Rechargeable batteries have huge
market share and are running from decades. They are environment friendly and create less
wastage.
They are eat-up batteries and have potential to save money of customers. They are
conveniently used for long term and are more suitable than single use. They give options to
charge until they are full when batteries die. But they have some negative sides too. They
provide lower rating of voltage. Ford Motor must investment in quality batter chargers because

cheap battery may cause shut off features and damage. Battery should be kept dry and clean for
longer use and better electrical connections. Fast charging increases potentiality of overcharging
the battery and create permanent damage. A battery will have long life span if it is fully charged
and energy is used effectively. More factors like driving habits, weather conditions and vehicle
type determine its life. Batteries should be properly tested and corrosion must be controlled
(Ehsani and et.al., 2018). After three years’ battery is considered older and there is swelling
when battery eats much heat. Thus, company should look upon electrical systems and make
virtual battery test regularly.
Mechanical issue of Ford:
Various models of Ford are experiencing mechanical issue. Sometimes tyres of Ford are
unevenly worn up. Proper checking should be done in the dents of tyres. This leads to costly
litigation and negative PR. Therefore, investors have to look into the concerns before investing
into the company (Helveston, 2016). Company should go for better alignment and make changes
in oil system. There should not be trouble in brake that includes squealing and noises which
distract customers. They should be looked by a good professional. Ford has a very strong fuel
efficiency which may not go with increased sales and now gas is cheaper than it. Recently, in top
selling, F-series have perfect pick up on fuel efficiency and aluminium sided version of F-150
that gives 29% better fuel efficiency. But this time new aluminium pickups started reverting the
assembly line in Dearborn from last month as gas prices has tanked. Ford is not rethinking to
launch an aluminium version of its Super Duty F-series from earlier trends. Thus rise in price of
petrol may be a problem for it.
Non-academic article:
Article 1: Ford Chief Executive Jim Hackett would cut $ 14 billion in next five years and shift
his capital investment from internal combustion and sedan to develop hybrid cars and trucks
(Ford plans $11 billion investment, 40 electrified vehicles by 2022, 2018. [Online] Available
through: <https://auto.ndtv.com/news/ford-plans-11-billion-investment-40-electrified-vehicles-
by-2022-1800135>).
Article 2: Ford is changing its business plan and assembling new battery-powered cars in
Mexico. Ford's vice president Sherif Marakby had altered some of its plans for Michigan plant
which is 25 miles south-west of Detroit (Ford Will Build Electric Cars in Mexico, Shifting Its

Plan, 2018. [Online] Available through: <https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/07/business/ford-
plant-electric.html>)
Article 3: On 3rd October CEO laid good plans to increase profits with fine strategic planning
and supported building electric vehicles. It has shifted from ICE to BEV which includes major
changes (Ford's Shift to Electric, 2018. [Online] Available through:
<https://in.reuters.com/article/us-autoshow-detroit-ford-motor/ford-plans-11-billion-investment-
40-electrified-vehicles-by-2022-idINKBN1F30YZ>).
Academic Article:
1. Amin, N.H.M., Ghani, M.R.A., Jidin, A., Jano, Z. and Sutikno, T., 2018. A Review of Hybrid
Battery Management System (H-BMS) for EV. Telkomnika. 16(3).
2. Canals Casals, L. and Amante García, B., 2016. Assessing electric vehicles battery second life
remanufacture and management. Journal of Green Engineering. 6(1). pp.77-98.
3. Ju, F., Zhang, Q., Deng, W. and Li, J., 2016. Review of structures and control of battery-
supercapacitor hybrid energy storage system for electric vehicles. Advances in Battery
Manufacturing, Service, and Management Systems. pp.303.
2. Weak sales in China: Company is facing weak sales in China from recent months and is
battle to with hybrid and electric vehicles so that it can comply with Chinese quotas over sales
and production (Fetzer, 2017). Sales are declined in recent quarter years. Due to this sluggish
sales investor have to rethink for the investment of new models (Liu, Wei and Zhang, 2018).
Sales of the company slipped by 1.8% as compared to last year. Some analysis waxed nostalgic
from past years. Many stakeholders depend on its brand that involves consumers, financial
investors and large companies.
Efficiency and sustainability related issue:
Present models of Ford are not environment friendly, energy efficient and sustainable.
Sustainability matters the most according to William Clay Ford. It has its pride in carrying
ethical responsibility and innovation. Yet, in terms of hybrid cars it is thriving against Toyota. Its
current business plan is not environmentally and financially sustainable. Models of company
should increase or decrease its consumer cost in complete performance. Some areas of research
include natural gas vehicles, electric vehicles and electric vehicles (Hu, Zou and Yang, 2016).
This can be done by redirecting efforts and R&D expenditures, free additional funds, informing
customers about new sustainable plan. This would create engineering firm, partnerships and

leading technology. Some ethical commitments are also build up with sustainable business
model. Company is facing international troubles from last few years. It is navigating Europe's
trouble for last three years.
There is shift in buying behaviour due to debt crisis evolving through huge pension costs.
These are affecting functionality and pricing structure of the company. Currency fluctuations in
Russia and Ukraine are also hurting Ford's results. It has to think on its strategy and launching of
every new model. Political crisis in Ukraine are destroying Russian economy which in turn is
affecting the plans of the company (JH and et.al., 2016). Its balance sheet looks disastrous but
adjustments are made through receivables and Ford Credit debts which seems to be Okay.
International problems decline car values and affects income statement which lower down its
profit margin because it cannot operate expense on its customers. Therefore, it has to beware of
upcoming problems and must take measures for political.
Non-academic article:
Article 1: Jim Hackett took over CEO of Ford and was charged for renewing an organisation
troubled from high prices, slumping profits and uncertain mind-set. Various new models like
Explorer SUV and escape would be launching in the middle of 2019. (Ford Changed Leaders,
Looking for a Lift. It’s Still Looking. 2018 [Online] Available through:
<https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/24/business/ford-hackett.html>).
Article 2: Till 2025 Ford will launch 50 new vehicles in China but is facing really weak sales in
recent months. China is forcing car makers towards hybrid and electric petrol vehicles and
setting tough quotas for fresh and innovative vehicles. Ford's head would be pointing to huge
growth in the 'utility' portion. (Ford set to launch electric cars in China amid weak sales, 2018.
[Online] Available through: <https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/ford-electric-
cars-china-launch-weak-sales-new-vehicles-a8092436.html>).
Article 3: Ford sales in China has suffered many challenges which includes local competitors
which have proven their brands, secondly its key models are showing their age (Rosevear., J,
2018. Why Ford’s China Sales Are Down – and How It’ll Recover. [Online] Available through:
<https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/07/08/why-fords-china-sales-are-down-and-how-itll-
recove.aspx>)
Academic Article:

1. Zhang, X., Liang, Y., Yu, E., Rao, R. and Xie, J., 2017. Review of electric vehicle policies in
China: Content summary and effect analysis. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 70.
pp.698-714.
2. Xia, X., Govindan, K. and Zhu, Q., 2015. Analyzing internal barriers for automotive parts
remanufacturers in China using grey-DEMATEL approach. Journal of Cleaner Production. 87.
pp.811-825.
3. Yang, J., Lu, W. and Zhou, C., 2014. The immediate impact of purchasing/sales contract
announcements on the market value of firms: An empirical study in China. International
Journal of Production Economics. 156. pp.169-179.
3. Ford faces Tire trouble and Firestone blowout: Ford company has reshaped in new century
and buying some vehicles like Land Rover and Volvo proved costly to it. There were ATX II,
15-inch Wilderness AT, radical ATX tire treads. It has poor quarter and blamed financial
setbacks on Firestone. There was a Ford Firestone dispute in 200 which is still running and
therefore there is influence on business relationship as far as Model T is concerned.
Quality related issue:
Ford has seen some troubles with the launching of new products. Some parts were faulty
with the launching of both Ford fusion and SUV. These were resolved quickly but quality should
be checked on regular basis. Some buyers face big problems with MyFord system. It included
touchscreen that allowed voice commands and was directly connected to smartphone. But lots of
functions were traditionally controlled with switches and conventional knobs. Therefore, it is
taking another step very effectively with changing procedures and suppliers so that big products
can be ensured properly. These products are Mustang and F-150 that must go smoothly. User
interface of the company is not good enough and is facing many problems. But now it will
update its software quickly (Holmes, 2017). Then too its quality is not up to the mark. Therefore,
Ford should focus on the quality of software and functions used in the car. Some knobs can be
accommodated in F-series pickups and are redesigned.
Non-academic article:
Article 1. Ford's Boss Jacques Nasser has declared that he will support his board of directors and
sign that chief executive is losing it. (Ford and Firestone's bitter legacy. 2018. [Online]
Available through: <https://www.economist.com/news/2001/06/20/ford-and-firestones-bitter-
legacy>)

Article 2: Firestone accused Ford in questioning about safety of its tires and diverting attention
from explorers in which almost 100 people have died in tire related crash. (Firestone to Stop
Sales to Ford. 2018. [Online] Available through:
<https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/22/business/firestone-to-stop-sales-to-ford-saying-it-was-
used-as-scapegoat.html>)
Article 3: Attorney Jay Halpern have been continuously suing makers of Ford tire over more
than a decade. But the two companies Firestone and Ford tried to show themselves as good
denominator in incident reports (How a Tire Problem Became a Crisis for Firestone, Ford. 2018.
[Online] Available through: <https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB965870212891028108>)
Academic article:
1.Stoll, M.L., 2019. Facilitating Trust: The Benefits and Challenges of Communicating
Corporate Social Responsibility Online. In Corporate Social Responsibility: Concepts,
Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 1049-1065). IGI Global.
2. Law, T.H., Daud, M.S., Hamid, H. and Haron, N.A., 2017. Development of safety
performance index for intercity buses: An exploratory factor analysis approach. Transport
policy. 58. pp.46-52.
3. Winkle, T., 2016. Development and approval of automated vehicles: considerations of
technical, legal, and economic risks. In Autonomous Driving (pp. 589-618). Springer, Berlin,
Heidelberg.
Problems faced by Company:
Problems of the company includes unilateral pricing and quick calling of car dealers
whenever required. Auto makers are facing problems of China operations which is a part of
Strategy rethink that comes under CEO Jim Hackett. Company wants to aim at electric as well as
commercial vans. These Chinese operations will influence launching of cars in future. They will
also affect pricing strategy to some extent. They have to keep inventory and sales momentum up
to date to meet differentiated customer demand. Dealers have to understand digital media and
deliver atmosphere to learn and study the current offerings (Hahn and et.al., 2015). There is a
marked change in China's NEV market from last few years. There are no infrastructural
standards in China. It will soon implement gasoline tax in order to change consumer behaviour.
Till 2022 china will contribute over half of global car sales. Mechanical condition, mileage and
outside wear and tear of car affects its pricing. Seating capacity, battery maintenance also

contributes in the pricing of cars. It would be affected by oil price, battery cost and station load
of hybrid and electric cars.
Concern of the company:
Main concern of the company is that every function is disrupted and is repeated with time.
Nothing is changed. Due to larger investment in electrification of cars there have to be changes
in the management system of Ford. Another major concern of Ford is to maintain its position in
the market. Its net worth in assets was $222.977 billion in 2009. Its mission statement is
considered as One Ford Mission. It has its position along with General Motors and Chrysler.
Q2. Justification of the chosen articles and the strategy used for searching
This section is to discourse upon the strategies undertaken for choosing relevant set of
articles for the most concerning issue of Ford, i.e., declining sales. For which, below are the
chosen set of articles-
Description of search strategies
Search strategy basically indicates the use of a well arranged structure of certain keywords
that are needed to be used for searching a record. It plays a prominent role in deriving accurate
outcomes by linking the principle concepts of search. Also, the search strategy accounts for some
vital aspects called likely search terms, keywords, phrases, shortened variants of search terms as
well as subject headings. Although, the search technique equally relies on the use of appropriate
database that works differently for distinct search strategy. It is thereby important to take
assistance of several search strategies and also test them by reviewing the obtained results.

Figure 1: Search procedure
Below are the strategies used for searching the aforementioned articles-
 Choosing search terms- Ford, Electric cars, Weak/ Declined sales, Declination of sales,
China depicts some significant key terms that has been used at the time of selecting the
articles, on considering the Issue 2, i.e., weak sales.
 Searching for exact phrases- This is yet another technique that has been used for the
purpose of attaining relevant articles and involved phrases like “Declination of Ford’s
sale in China”, “Weak sales by Ford in China”, “Ford’s adopting electric cars”, etc.
 Databases for searching- This is in regard to specify the use of pertinent databases to
retrieve the articles. In the present case, general and bibliographic databases were used
namely Google Scholar, JSTOR, ProQuest, EMBASE, ISI Web of Knowledge, Business
source, EBSCOHost, Premier, Scopus, Wiley Online Library, Springer Link and Oxford
journals, etc. This assisted in browsing high quality and popular articles with topic
specific journals that are frequently published on the elected subject matter. However, on
considering the present research topic, a vital assistance was of several such articles that
were accessed online through various mass media sites such as The Financial Times,
Economist and company’s own official website. Also, another important consideration

was in regard to select the articles published within a specific timeframe and are not older
than 2010. A major stress was on choosing latest articles of the year 2015, 2016, 2017
and 2018.
 Use of Boolean operators- This being another most important strategy involved the use
of 3 main Boolean operators namely, AND, OR and NOT. With the help of these
aforesaid operators, relevant articles were revived from the internet, as well as, from the
chosen databases, as shown below-
Databases Business
source
EBSCOHost
Premier
Jstor Google
Scholar
EMBASE
Academic articles Articles
retrieved
Articles
retrieved
Articles
retrieved
Articles
retrieved
Articles
used
SmartText Searching
(Ford)AND (Sales decline) 25
(Ford)AND(Sales decline)OR (Weak
sales)
25 175 1
(China)AND(Ford)AND(Sales
decline)
10
(Ford)AND(China)NOT(Asia) 15
(Ford’s sales)AND(2018)AND(China) 5 125 2
(Problems)OR(Challenges)AND(Ford) 20
Most significant theory related article
This is to discourse upon the most relevant theory related article, chosen from academic
articles, “Zhang, X., Liang, Y., Yu, E., Rao, R. and Xie, J., 2017. Review of electric vehicle
policies in China: Content summary and effect analysis. Renewable and Sustainable Energy
Reviews. 70. pp.698-714.” has been found to be the most assistive one. It is mainly on referring
to its concerning aspect of reviewing the policies related to the use of electric vehicle in China.
On Ford’s acceptance towards electric vehicles in China, a huge declination of its business has

been seen over here. This has in turn supported in carrying out the present study investigating
weak sale of Ford in China.
Most significant business related article
Herein, the most significant business article has been found to be “Rosevear., J, 2018. Why
Ford’s China Sales Are Down – and How It’ll Recover. [Online] Available through:
<https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/07/08/why-fords-china-sales-are-down-and-how-itll-
recove.aspx>. This is due to its direct link with that to the topic of this research work and is
based on the declined sales of Ford in China. This has greatly assisted in carrying out this
investigation with factual information gathered directly from a well-known website which is also
providing assistance to people in making better investments. It thus seemed to be very helpful in
carrying out the present exploration of Ford’s weak sales in China.
Q3. Appraise sources of information
This is to assess the above used sources of information with a special consideration of issue
2 that is on weakening sales of Ford in China. Herein, both the selected sources were efficient in
terms of informing the researcher about the factual instances of Ford, due to which, it dealt with
difficulties in sales in China. Also, on considering the databases used for the purpose of choosing
the articles, it has been found that both Google scholar along with the business sources were
effective in providing relevant set of information to the investigator for exploring the data.
Beside this, on referring to the delimitations of Google scholar as the most effective database, it
has been found to be very familiar and reasonably easy to use. It also permits the users to
research a wide range of materials that involves both academic articles and books. It is also
supportive in terms of showing the authors who have written the articles, which in turn helps in
suitably cite the same in distinct styles. It is also helpful in terms of assisting the users to save
both the articles as well as its citation to read them later.
Although, their together exists some vital number of issues in Google scholar, becoming a
matter of concern for the users. It has been critiqued for not being much comprehensive but
rather wide ranging. This leads in generating varying outcomes and questioning the suitability of
their determined results. Apart from this, it often does not assist in limiting the results by
discipline and makes it difficult for the users to choose peer reviewed, scholarly and full text

materials. Lastly, its updating concept is a bit sceptical, providing no prior notice while updating
materials. In addition to this, its citation tracker system is often erroneous and not easy to use.
CONCLUSION
This is on summarising the above report that has been done in 3 distinct parts. The foremost
part has demonstrated some concerning issues of Ford as the chosen company with a special
reference to its slowing sales in China. It is hereby based on a given case study describing its
future plans. This has been followed by another 2 vital tasks depicting the use of sources done
for selecting specific articles about the problems identified in Ford. Lastly, the used sources were
together evaluated on the basis of their suitability at the end of this report.

REFERENCES
Books and Journal:
Bohnsack, R., Pinkse, J. and Kolk, A., 2014. Business models for sustainable technologies:
Exploring business model evolution in the case of electric vehicles. Research Policy.
43(2). pp.284-300.
Burkert, A., 2017. China’s Unique Approach to Electric Vehicles. ATZ worldwide. 119(4). pp.8-
13.
Ehsani, M., Gao, Y., Longo, S. and Ebrahimi, K., 2018. Modern electric, hybrid electric, and
fuel cell vehicles. CRC press.
Fetzer, T., 2017. Paradoxes of internationalization: British and German trade unions at Ford
and General Motors 1967-2000. Oxford University Press.
Hahn, T., and et.al., 2015. Tensions in corporate sustainability: Towards an integrative
framework. Journal of Business Ethics. 127(2). pp.297-316.
Helveston, J.P., 2016. Development and Adoption of Plug-in Electric Vehicles in China:
Markets, Policy, and Innovation (Doctoral dissertation, Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA).
Holmes, M., 2017. High volume composites for the automotive challenge. Reinforced Plastics.
61(5). pp.294-298.
Hu, X., Zou, Y. and Yang, Y., 2016. Greener plug-in hybrid electric vehicles incorporating
renewable energy and rapid system optimization. Energy. 111. pp.971-980.
JH, F., and et.al., 2016. " Ford Motor Company, 2101 Village Road, Dearborn, MI 48121.
Magnesium Technology 2014. pp.517.
Liu, C., Wei, Y. and Zhang, L., 2018. Licensing or not Licensing? A Pilot Study on Examining
the Apparel Extension of Auto Brands Ford and Jeep in China Market. In Chinese
Consumers and the Fashion Market (pp. 145-168). Springer, Singapore.
Lu, J., and et.al., 2016. The role of nanotechnology in the development of battery materials for
electric vehicles. Nature nanotechnology. 11(12). pp.1031.
Macdonald, D., 2017. Ford Foundation. Routledge.
Mi, C. and Masrur, M.A., 2017. Hybrid electric vehicles: principles and applications with
practical perspectives. John Wiley & Sons.

Nykvist, B. and Nilsson, M., 2015. Rapidly falling costs of battery packs for electric vehicles.
nature climate change. 5(4). p.329.
Pietron, G.M., and et.al., Ford Global Technologies LLC, 2017. Methods and systems for a
vehicle driveline. U.S. Patent 9,688,269.
Qin, Z., 2016. Can PSA Peugeot Citroën Succeed in China?. In Market Entry in China (pp. 45-
58). Springer, Cham.
Reich, D., and et.al., 2016. Scheduling Crash Tests at Ford Motor Company. Interfaces. 46(5).
pp.409-423.
Sperling, D., van der Meer, E. and Pike, S., 2018. Vehicle Automation: Our Best Shot at a
Transportation Do-Over?. In Three Revolutions (pp. 77-108). Island Press, Washington,
DC.
Zhang, X., Rao, R., Xie, J. and Liang, Y., 2014. The current dilemma and future path of China’s
electric vehicles. Sustainability. 6(3). pp.1567-1593.
Online
Ford Changed Leaders, Looking for a Lift. It’s Still Looking. 2018. Available through:
<https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/24/business/fordhackett.html?rref=collection
%2Ftimestopic%2FFord%20Motor
%20Company&action=click&contentCollection=business&region=stream&module=strea
m_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=9&pgtype=collection>
Ford plans $11 billion investment, 40 electrified vehicles by 2022. 2018. Available through:
<https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autoshow-detroit-ford-motor/ford-plans-11-billion-
investment-40-electrified-vehicles-by-2022-idUSKBN1F30YZ>
Ford set to launch electric cars in China amid weak sales. 2018. Available through:
<https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/ford-electric-cars-china-launch-
weak-sales-new-vehicles-a8092436.html>
Ford Will Build Electric Cars in Mexico, Shifting Its Plan. 2018. Available through:
<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/07/business/ford-plant-electric.html>
Ford's Shift to Electric. 2018. Available through: <https://seekingalpha.com/article/4118253-
fords-shift-electric>