Ford: Alignment of HRM and Business Strategies

Ford Motor Company is a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 175,000 employees and 65 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company (Ford b, nd).

Business strategy

Ford’s overall business strategy is encapsulated in it’s the slogan One Ford Strategy (Ford a, nd) and Going Further (Ford c, nd).   The essence of the One Ford Strategy is to aggressively restructure the company so that it will become profitable with the current demand, accelerate products that customer wants, improve its balance sheet and to work together as a team (Ford a, nd).  The Going Further strategy on the other hand is Ford’s commitment to improve and innovate its products and service not only today but also tomorrow to be able to build a better world (Ford c, nd).  

These strategy can be seen in its recent aggressive marketing campaign and the introduction of new products such as Ford Focus and Ford Fiesta which became the company’s best selling models in the market in 2014 (Company Profiles, 2012).

Human resource strategy

To achieve Ford’s strategy of restructuring to make it profitable through One Ford Strategy and to continuously improve through its Going Further strategy is tied up with its human resource strategy.  Part of the human restructuring its human
capital who would deliver innovative products and services that will keep the company competitive not only today but also tomorrow.

These business strategies is reflected in the core of Ford Motor’s human strategy which is to build a “team of people who possess strong consumer instincts and innovative ideas, who draw strength from diversity, and who can deliver the performance needed to compete effectively in a global marketplace” (Ford b, nd).

In sum, to be able to become profitable, Ford Motors has to have people with diversified talents who would deliver innovative, value and service to its customers in terms of products and services.

3 ways to increase diversity at Ford

Motors’ pillar of human resource strategy is to promote diversity and inclusion.  The ways to increase diversity in the company would be;

1. Continue and expand the practice of diversity and integration in its policies and practices with the collaboration of the Commission for Racial Equality and known as the Diversity and Equality Assessment Review (Dear) (Ball, 2006).  Policy integration of diversity ensures that diversity is enforced and practice in the company not only in its headquarters but also on its various branches around the world.
2. Encourage hiring from different ethnic backgrounds where hiring will only depend on capability and qualification disregarding other factors that could be discriminatory (i.e. race, gender, nationality, religious belief, political orientation, sexual orientation)
3. Adopt a zero tolerance policy against discrimination of any kind which includes not only race, gender, religious belief, political orientation but also sexual orientation.
4. HR positions and the responsibilities listed at Ford

There are various positions and responsibilities at Ford but it can be categorized into several categories for brevity.  These positions and responsibilities are present in “labor relations, business operations, benefits, workforce planning and recruiting, organizational development, personnel relations, HR strategy and learning and development” (Ford b, nd).

Preferred position and why

My preferred position would be in the recruitment because Ford is embarking on an aggressive marketing campaign where it will launch an aggressive hiring campaign to hire more than 3,000 salaried employees.  This will provide me a great experience in the best hiring practices considering that there will be more than 3,000 applications that will be processed.  It is also a valuable opportunity to expose myself to more than 3,000 people of varying background and capabilities that would enhance my capability and perspective in HR selection.  In addition, the experience would also teach me about the various tools and methodologies employed by top companies to hire the best employees.

HRM strategy as a competitive advantage

Ford Motor’s HRM strategy as a competitive advantage is to capitalize on the diversity of its talents.  This means that Ford Motors will make the most of the varying background of its human resource to deliver unparalleled products and services.  Diversity is also employed as a strategy in HR not only in selection but also in the tasks where employees are encouraged to do job rotation or various jobs to avoid boredom at work that could result in mediocre work.  Ford also uses HR Intelligence/Analytics to do manage and do a predictive analytic to understanding its human resource and improve its performance (Faletta, 2013)