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Ford competitors.

Meanwhile, General Motors caught the change in customer demand and began to offer them cars. larger size, more colorful, more comfortable. These cars cost slightly more than Ford's Model T, but the buyer felt that General Motors cars could pay more. In addition, General Motors began to offer several different brands Cars: Chevy, Pontiacs, Oldsmobiles, Buicks, Cadillacs. And Ford only had a cheap Model T and a very expensive Lincoln. If a person has achieved some success in life, but not yet enough to afford to drive a Lincoln, he would look for something between a Model T and a Lincoln, and he would find it at General Motors. Ford changed the business sense, the sense of the market.

On May 26, 1927, American newspapers wrote: The 15 millionth Model T rolled off the assembly line at Ford's River Rouge plant near Detroit today. Although the cars of this brand are the most successful in the history of the automotive industry, they are selling worse and giving way to more modern models competitors. Rumor has it that Henry Ford is going to replace the Model T with a new, more advanced car in the near future.

In 1927, Henry Ford discontinued his main brainchild - "Model T", and in January 1928 a new "Model A" appeared. The innovation of this model was the protective windshield installed during assembly, which has since become an indispensable element of the car. Glass could be colored and 17 configurations. On all 4 wheels were installed brake pads and hydraulic shock absorbers. Although both buyers and dealers liked the new model, Ford's former position as the undisputed leader automotive industry could not be restored.

The popularity of Ford cars continued to decline, and by 1940 the corporation accounted for less than 20% of the domestic American market.

The overwhelming success of Henry Ford at first was also facilitated by the fact that he assembled an excellent team of talented engineers and economists, whom he later, in fact, dispersed, becoming intolerant of situations when he was pointed out to errors in the organization of planning, marketing and business in general.

In 1945, Henry Ford stepped down as president of his corporation and on April 7, 1947, died in Dearborn at the age of 83.

So, Henry Ford is the most influential businessman of the 20th century. He, in fact, predetermined the strategy for the development of mass industrial production for the whole century: the production of relatively inexpensive products, but very thoughtfully distributed. This is based on the principles developed by Henry Ford. They are used in a wide variety of industries. On this, for example, the Coca-Cola companies or the McDonald's chain of restaurants grew. Here, quantity and general availability cover the flaws in quality. The food at McDonald's isn't gourmet, but it's reasonably priced, cheap, and always available on every corner. Henry Ford's Model T wasn't God knows what kind of car either, but it was acceptable, cheap, and available everywhere.

This system, introduced by Henry Ford, became the basis of a successful business in the 20th century. And higher wages for unskilled labor on the assembly line is also Ford's idea, which became widespread in all highly developed countries in the 20th century. The car, higher wages and the personal interest of the worker in the income of the enterprise - this is what has shaped in the Western countries middle class. Already at the beginning of the century, people who made cars were able to buy these cars. This system, proposed and implemented by Ford, was called Fordism.

Fordism, a system of organizing mass-flow production that arose in the United States in the first quarter of the 20th century. It is named after the American engineer and industrialist G. Ford (N. Ford, 1863–1947), who first introduced it on his automobile factories in the years River Rouge and Dearborn (USA).

The basis of Fordism and the new methods of organizing production and labor caused by it was the assembly line. Each of the workers placed along the conveyor carried out one operation, consisting of several (or even one) labor movements (for example, turning a nut with a wrench), for which practically no qualification was required. According to Ford, 43% of workers required training of up to one day, 36% - from one day to one week, 6% - one to two weeks, 14% - from a month to a year.

Introduction assembly line along with some others technical innovations(product typing, standardization and unification of parts, their interchangeability, etc.) led to a sharp increase in labor productivity and a decrease in production costs, laid the foundation for mass production. At the same time, Fordism led to an unprecedented increase in the intensity of labor, its lack of content, and automatism. Fordism is designed to turn workers into robots and requires extreme nervous and physical stress. The forced rhythm of labor, set by the conveyor, necessitated the replacement of the piecework form of payment for the labor force by the time. Fordism, like Taylorism before it, became synonymous with the methods of exploitation of workers inherent in the monopoly stage of capitalism, designed to increase profits for capitalist monopolies.

In an effort to suppress the discontent of the workers and prevent their organized struggle in defense of their rights and interests, Ford introduced barracks discipline at the enterprises, planted a system of espionage among the workers, and maintained his own police to crack down on activist workers. For many years, union activity was not allowed at Ford's facilities.

In My Life, My Achievements (1924), Ford claimed to be a "social reformer" and argued that his methods of organizing production and labor could transform bourgeois society into a "society of abundance and social harmony." Ford lauded his system as caring for workers, especially the higher wages in his factories than the industry average. However, higher wages are associated primarily with the exceptionally high rates of labor, the rapid wear and tear of the labor force, and the task of attracting more and more workers to replace those who are out of action.

The protests of the working people against the destructive social consequences of Fordism are regarded by bourgeois ideologists as resistance to technical progress. In reality, the working class is not fighting against technical progress, but against the capitalist exploitation of its achievements. In the conditions of the modern scientific and technological revolution and the increase in the general educational and professional level of training of the working class, the intensification of its struggle, Fordism has become a brake on the growth of labor productivity.

In the early 70s. Some capitalist firms are experimenting with modifying conveyor production in order to reduce monotony, increase the content and attractiveness of labor, and hence its efficiency. For this, conveyor lines are reconstructed: they are shortened, operations on them are combined, workers are moved along the conveyor to perform a cycle of operations, etc. Such events are often portrayed by bourgeois sociologists as a manifestation of entrepreneurs' concern for the "humanization of labor." However, in reality they are dictated by the desire to adapt Fordism to modern conditions and thereby improve the methods of exploitation of the workers.

Only under socialism is a true humanization of labor achieved: a person becomes a creative person, confident in the social value of his activity; comprehends the science of management of production, state, society. Any form of technical progress, including the assembly line, is applied under conditions of average socially normal intensity of labor and is accompanied by easing and improving its conditions.

Let's go back to the beginning. Henry Ford, before approaching his "Model T", created 8 other models. All of them were not the best for their time. But they were inexpensive. Then the main idea of ​​​​Ford was formed: to turn the car from a luxury item into an essential item.

The life story of some people is simply amazing. They are trying to imitate, envy, consider the favorites of fortune. But no one thinks that their success is not only luck, but also the result of exhausting mental and physical labor, adherence to certain life principles. Their ups alternated with downs, but perseverance, commitment to the idea and faith did not allow them to give up. The history of Henry Ford - an example worthy of respect for many people seeking to go beyond the circle of their usual existence and trying to achieve certain goals. The principles of life, conduct and organization of business, for which this amazing personality became famous, are very popular and now do not lose their relevance.

The Beginning of Henry Ford's History: Pocket Watches

Engineer, inventor, talented industrialist, container manufacturing pioneer, founder Ford motor Company was born in 1863 near Dearborn, Michigan. Henry's father owned a farm. The life of a rural boy was no different from the life of his peers. Helping parents with housework, attending a rural school foreshadowed a monotonous life and unpromising work. Henry was an opponent of this state of affairs, he could not stand Agriculture and constantly thought about creating another life for himself. The father noticed this and considered the boy an incorrigible lazybones, but he could do nothing, since all the work was done, albeit reluctantly, but irreproachably.

The pocket watch presented by his father completely turned Ford's worldview around. The boy opened their lid in order to look at the device. Before him appeared new world. Each detail, which does not represent any value separately, interacted with the rest. The failure of one screw or spring could lead to the failure of the entire mechanism. And only the coordinated work of all parts ensured the perfect running of the watch.

After that, Henry began to think about the structure of the world. Each person represents just a small detail, and only interaction with the rest gives it significance. Success depends on properly organized management activities, knowing which lever to press at the right time.

Henry Ford Principle 1

If more than one person is involved in the business, it must be a partnership. Even if a businessman hires a messenger, he chooses a partner.

At the same time, the future businessman built himself a small workshop, where he spent all his free time from work. It was in it that he created his steam engine - his first own invention. In addition, the boy was engaged in repairing watches. By doing this, he earned pocket money and continued doing his favorite thing.
One day, returning home, Henry noticed an unusual device from which steam was coming out. The delight knew no bounds. The self-propelled mechanism so struck Ford's imagination that a few minutes spent in the driver's cab seemed to be the meaning of a lifetime.

At the age of 15, the future millionaire came to the final conclusion that he was not interested in agriculture, dropped out of school and left home. When he got to Detroit, he took a job at a horse-drawn carriage factory, where he became an apprentice engineer. Ford's success at work and his ability to find the most difficult breakdowns in a short time began to envy other employees. Together, they achieved the dismissal of a valuable employee in just a week.

The shipyard is Ford's next job. A very small salary made it impossible to live normally, and Henry began to earn extra money by repairing clockwork. Henry went from one job to another. Sometimes it seemed to him that the chain of failures would never end. However, numerous layoffs and lack of money were not an obstacle. During all this time, the passion for cars has not subsided for a minute. Every free moment, experiments were carried out on the creation of their offspring.

Henry Ford Principle 2

Failure is an opportunity. You can start all over again, but given the mistakes made

Father of the Talented young man did not leave hope to return his son to the family. Henry received 40 acres of land in exchange for giving up his favorite business. Since there was no other way out, he agreed to such conditions, built a sawmill and took the position of its manager. The father was deceived. The idea of ​​creating a self-propelled stroller did not subside for a minute.

Henry Ford Principle 3

If you want to achieve something in life, you must learn to lie

The first success came in 1888 with his marriage to Clara Bryant. The wife was three years younger than Ford, they had many common interests. Her faith in her husband knew no bounds. In the most difficult moments, she was exactly the driving force that makes us move forward. Clara never interfered in her husband's affairs, however, she always showed great interest.

Henry Ford on his personal life: An engineer was asked how he would live his life if it was started over. He replied that it does not matter, the main thing is to live it with his wife.

Detroit was the next place where the couple soon moved. Henry took a job as an engineer at a local electrical company. This position was in line with the interests of the young inventor. Five years after his marriage, the young inventor, after several days of non-stop work, completed an experiment in building his car. In the middle of the night, it was reported to his wife that tests would now be carried out to launch it. His appearance the design did not impress Clara.

The design on bicycle tires of about 500 pounds of weight looked rather ridiculous.
Henry climbed in, turned the knob, and the motor started. The engine rumbled, roared, wheezed, the carriage shook pretty badly, but it began to move. By the dim light of a kerosene lamp on the front, the car moved. This story ended in about an hour. In the pouring rain, Ford returned home. He was pushing his invention, because on the way there was mechanical failure, but reached the place to which he aspired. Success was evident. The first step towards realizing the dream has been taken.

Henry Ford Principle 4

If you do what you always do, then you will get what you always got.

To feed his family, he had to work in several automobile companies at once. Ford was a very talented worker. When a big waste of money was noticed on personal experiences, he was offered high positions in return for giving up his favorite activity. The engineer was confused. The dream story ended the moment work began for someone else.

But, as always, the support of his wife played a decisive role. Ford decided to build his business. The engineer began to look for partners and people who would agree to finance the project. He found businessmen who gave him money. However, the project failed. At first there was no demand for cars, then there was no way to find like-minded people. Ford's ignorance of business laws led to one failure after another.

Henry Ford Principle 5

Those who oppose the laws of nature and the laws of business can quickly feel their power.

It seemed that success would never come. However, the third attempt of 40-year-old Henry was successful. History began in 1903 well-known company"Ford Motors Company". All her assets consisted of 28 thousand dollars, modest equipment, tools and a small room. Ford became the manager of the company. The models produced were not popular.

And then the understanding came to Henry that the demand for a car would only be with its simplicity and reasonable price.

A few years later, a car was created that broke all sales records. Affordable, even to people of average income, reliable, easy to use model "T", had high traffic. The company hired only talented people. People who came to work for money preferred talented nuggets who were passionate about their work. After all, Ford's education was not very high, he could not even read the blueprints.

Henry Ford Principle 6

Money in the foreground detracts from the importance of work. Fear of failure, new technologies, competition will not let things move forward

In 1913, Henry Ford pioneered conveyor production. The assembly process began to take a few seconds, even an unskilled employee could perform a separate job.

Henry Ford Principle 7

An enterprise is a community. Those who do their own work do not have enough time for someone else's

And in 1914, the most revolutionary change in labor relations between employees and company administration was adopted. Unprecedented increase in wages, reduction of the working day to 8 hours, and the working week to 6 hours. A wage supplement was introduced for employees without bad habits. People began to value jobs, staff turnover is no longer a problem. In addition, the workers had the opportunity to purchase the Company's car. Success was not long in coming - sales soared instantly.

In 1919, the Ford family buys back all the shares of the company and becomes the sole owner of the Ford Motors Company. Full success came at the beginning of the 20s. The automobile king bypassed all competitors. The company owned factories, iron mines and coal mines. Other enterprises also ensured the full-fledged activity of the Ford Motors Company. The film studio, the publishing house, the airport were part of Ford's empire. The ability to provide their own production led to independence from foreign trade.

However, success was not a constant companion of a businessman. The fall in sales, litigation, unscrupulous competitors did not allow me to calmly enjoy the triumph. But the dream was fulfilled.

Henry Ford Principle 8

Don't want things that money can buy. Improve the world you live in

In 1947, the great man died. A dream, aspiration, faith in success - these are exactly the qualities that many people lack.

“Can you do something or are you sure you can't - in both cases you are right" / Henry Ford

Studying biographies successful people does not aim to copy their model of behavior. You, my dear reader, must understand that it is your personality that makes you worthy of success.

The hero of our today's article, Henry Ford, said this about this: "All Ford cars are exactly the same, but no two people are exactly the same." The main task of each person is to find his spark of individuality and "keep it going out is your only real reason to play an important role."

But, just as a hammer is the perfect tool for hammering nails, some human qualities and problem-solving methods are so effective that such “tools” are worth adopting.

It is about them that we will talk today.

Henry Ford, the legendary businessman of the twentieth century, the organizer of the assembly line and the "father" of the automobile industry, was born July 30, 1863 on a farm near Dearborn, Michigan.

His family was quite prosperous, but, as Ford noted, "there was too much work in the household, compared with the results." Education, which left much to be desired, Henry received in a church school. Already an adult Ford, drawing up important contracts, still made mistakes. One day he will sue a newspaper that called him “ignorant”, and to the accusation of ignorance he will answer: “If I ... needed to answer your stupid questions, I would only have to press a button in the office, and specialists would appear at my disposal with answers.

Ford did not consider illiteracy to be a disadvantage, but an unwillingness to apply the mind in life: “The most difficult thing in the world is to think with your own head. That's probably why so few people do it."

At the age of 12, Henry saw a locomobile for the first time. The meeting with the crew with the motor made a great impression on Ford, and this began his attempts to design a moving mechanism. His parents did not approve of his passion for mechanics and dreamed of seeing Henry as a respectable farmer. At the age of 17, when he was apprenticed to a machine shop, they considered him "almost dead".

After 4 years, Ford returns home, and combines day work on the farm with night vigils on the next invention.

In 1887, he marries the daughter of a farmer, Clara Bryant, with whom he will live his entire life. After 4 years, the couple has a son, Edsel. Clara was a smart and calm woman who became a real assistant to the indefatigable Henry. Somehow, when asked by journalists if he wants to live another life, Ford will answer like this: "Only if you can remarry Clara."

To make farm work easier, Ford invents a gasoline-powered corn threshing machine. Ford sells the patent for this invention to Thomas Edison, who invites Henry to join his company. However, even there, in the position of chief engineer, Henry is still most attracted to cars.

He was simply obsessed with the idea of ​​​​creating a car accessible to everyone. Ford correctly believed that “ideas in themselves are valuable, but every idea is ultimately only an idea. The challenge is to put it into practice." In 1893, in his spare time, Ford designs his first car.

The company's management does not approve of Ford's experiments and advises to abandon them. But Henry remains true to his idea of ​​turning the car from a luxury item into a means of transportation, and, full of hope for the future, leaves the service: “If you have enthusiasm, you can do anything. Enthusiasm is the basis of any progress.”

In 1899 he became a co-owner of the Detroit car company”, but in 1902, due to disagreements, he leaves from there.

But if Ford has swung to turn millions of ordinary pedestrians into proud car owners, then nothing can stop him on the chosen path:

“When it seems that the whole world is against you, remember that the plane takes off against the wind!”

At the wheel of his invention, Ford drives around potential customers. But the new Fordmobile is not in demand, and the townsfolk tease Henry as a Begley Street obsession. But does he give up? No. Ford once again demonstrates his approach to life's failures, considering them "an opportunity to start again, but more wisely." He believed that honest failure is not humiliating, but the fear of failure is humiliating. It's hard to disagree with him.

After all, there is hardly a person in the world who always gets everything right the first time. Perseverance, determination and perseverance - these are the qualities of a real fighter. “More often people give up than they fail.”, said Henry Ford.

In 1902, he makes an amazing advertisement for his car - driving his car in auto racing, he is ahead of the American champion! Hey Henry! It’s hard to come up with the best PR company, and Ford, like no one else, understands the importance of advertising: "If I had 4 dollars, 3 of them I would give to advertising."

Who doesn't love being around a winner? Ford's clientele soon began to grow. By attracting investors, Henry in 1903 founded a company named after himself - Ford motor company.

He devotes all his efforts to creating universal car, simple, reliable and cheap. At that time, the idea of ​​a "car for everyone" was not clear to many, mass car was something fantastic, as now, for example, "mass aircraft". However, Henry cares little about all this, because he believes that “Everything can be done better than it has been done so far.”

Ford simplifies the design of the car, standardizes its parts and mechanisms. He is the first in the world to introduce a conveyor into the production of machines. it innovative solution in the blink of an eye brings him to the leaders of the automotive industry, and leaves competitors far behind.

And although the conveyor was used in the 19th century and before it, when we say "conveyor" - we mean Henry Ford, the man who achieved his dream and unprecedented success with his help.

In 1908, with the release of the Ford T model, good luck comes to the company. Henry's self-designed Ford T was not expensive, but it was practical and much cheaper than competitors' cars. Ernest Hemingway himself drove the Ford T converted into an ambulance van.

Ford-T sales are hugely profitable, because Ford's motto has always been "cheap and good" and not "cheap and bad": Quality is doing something right, even when no one is watching.

In 1909, a Ford T costs $850; in 1913, $550. In 1914, the company celebrates the release of the 10 millionth Ford T. At that time, 10% of all cars in the world were these cars.

In the same 1914, Henry Ford decides to raise the wages of his workers to $5 a day. He believed that:

“If you require someone to give their time and energy to a cause, then take care that he does not experience financial difficulties.”

Probably, the main secret of Ford lies not so much in innovations in production, but in a humane attitude towards one’s neighbor: “My secret of success lies in the ability to understand the point of view of another person and look at things both from his and from my own points of view.”

It is at Ford's facility that for the first time in the US, workers receive an 8-hour shift, a 6-day work week, and paid vacations. "The man who invented the day off" additionally rewarded non-smoking and non-drinking workers.

People lined up to get jobs with Ford. When recruiting, he assessed only the willingness to work:

“I don’t care where the person came from – from Sing Sing prison or Harvard. We hire a person, not a story."

There were no issues with staff turnover, although the discipline at the factory was tough. "Time doesn't like being wasted", - said Ford, not allowing himself or the workers to relax. He was convinced that: "Only two incentives make people work: the desire for wages and the fear of losing it."

At his enterprise, Ford implemented the principle "less administrative spirit in business life and more business spirit in administration."

Deciding that paperwork slows down the process of producing cars, Ford at his factory - walk like that! - abolished statistics. At Ford, there were no production meetings, no redundant documentation, and no communication between departments.

Meanwhile, thanks to Henry Ford, more and more people were getting a 4-wheel friend. His workers, receiving a decent salary, bought the Ford T, and soon the growth in sales brought such a profit that Ford bought out all the shares of the company's shareholders.

"Who should be the boss?" is like asking: “Who should be the tenor in this quartet?” Of course, the one who can sing in a tenor,” said Mr. Ford, now the full owner of the company.

By the early 1920s, Henry Ford was selling more cars than all of his competitors combined; out of 10 cars bought in the US, 7 were made by him. It was at this time that he received the title of "car king".

Ford invests in the purchase of other factories, mines, coal mines, and everything that is required to produce cars. Thus, "the owner of factories, newspapers, steamboats" creates an entire empire, independent of foreign trade.

At the same time, a successful industrialist does not get hung up on dollars, it is he who owns the phrase:

“The main use of capital is not to make more money but to make money to improve life."

In 1922, Ford published an autobiographical book, My Life, My Achievements, written vividly and figuratively.

However, to live quietly until retirement, reaping the fruits of past successes, neither competitors nor buyers give Henry Ford. Sales of the affordable car are starting to fall.

The creator of the Ford-T believed that "if they bought it once, they will always buy it." However, people wanted variety, and Ford could only offer "A car of any color as long as that color is black."

General Motors provided customers with different models cars, and beat Ford's competitive advantage - affordability - by selling cars on credit.

By 1927, sales of the Ford T had declined so much that Ford was in danger of going bankrupt. "Well-wishers" anticipated the collapse of the businessman, but Ford did not give up this time either. After all, if yesterday's beliefs did not justify themselves, this is just an excuse to come up with something new: "They are everywhere - these strange people who do not know that yesterday is yesterday, and who wake up every morning with last year's thoughts in their heads."

A New Look to the current situation - this is the method of solving problems that should not gather dust in the luggage of a modern person.

By his example, Ford showed that positive thinking works and brings results. If you are sure that luck will come to you, so it will be: "Thinking about the future, the desire to do more, puts the mind in a state where it seems that nothing is impossible."

Ford suspends production and dismisses almost all the workers, while he himself is working on the creation of the next car. In 1927 he presents new model"Ford-A" (prototype of the Soviet "Victory"), which compares favorably with existing technical specifications and appearance.

Ford again emerges victorious. He runs the company until the 30s, and then transfers business to his son, but again returns to the post of head of the company after his death in 1943.

Henry Ford passed away at the age of 83, in the same place where he was born - in the provincial town of Dearborn.

Currently, the company he created is the 4th in the world in terms of car production for the entire period of existence.

Henry Ford, who embodied american dream", saw his mission in improving people's lives, because for him cars were not only cars, but a great source of joy. And when journalists asked him what such a rich man could wish for, Ford answered them like this:

“I would like to improve the world by living in it”.

A worthy answer that we can all think about.

Henry Ford - the success story of the famous automaker businessman (part 2)

Most of the Ford T cars that have been running on the roads around the world for decades have been black. The clever marketer Henry Ford repeatedly said that the buyer can buy a car of his production in any color, but this color must be ... black. He by all means wanted to establish himself in the eyes of buyers and public opinion as a conservative, once and for all committed to black. In fact, due to the introduction of the assembly line in 1913, only imported quick-drying Japanese black varnish had time to dry by the time the car had to leave it.

As soon as quick-drying paints and varnishes of other colors appeared, multi-colored Ford-Ts began to roll off the assembly line. (By the way, before the introduction of conveyor assembly, Ford produced cars different colors.) The car magnate, who was the first in the world to introduce assembly line assembly of cars, did not want to give competitors the slightest chance to find at least some flaw in new form organization of the production process.

There are various versions of how Henry Ford invented such a now well-known and natural form of organization of automobile assembly production as a conveyor. Some historians of the automobile industry claim that this idea was “prompted” to the American industrialist by the appearance of a clerk who quickly and deftly delivered mail around the office on roller skates.

Others argue that the automobile tycoon came up with the idea of ​​the conveyor after he once saw the technology of butchering beef carcasses in a meat processing plant, which were suspended on hooks from one worker to another. But, in fact, now it doesn’t matter what prompted Ford to organize a conveyor assembly of cars at their factories. It is important for the development of not only the American, but also the global automotive industry, that components and parts began to be supplied with great accuracy to assembled cars moving along the conveyor.

The introduction of assembly line technology for automobiles has greatly increased labor productivity, especially after a global window repair was carried out at the plant. So, if at the very beginning of the company's formation it took 12.5 hours to manufacture a car, then in 1927 it took only 24 seconds! If in 1908 the Ford Motor Company produced 100 cars a day, then in the last year of the release of the T model in 1927, the company produced 9173 cars per day (that is, for three working shifts of eight hours)! If in 1914 about 200 thousand cars were manufactured, then 10 years later, ten times more, that is, almost 50 percent of world production!

Henry Ford already considered the millions of cars produced, which, of course, was reflected in corporate holidays. For example, December 10, 1915 was a special day, as the millionth Ford car rolled off the assembly line. And on June 4, 1924, the release of the ten millionth Ford was celebrated.

Accordingly, with the increased production volumes, the number of workers employed in it also increased. So, if in 1903 only 311 people worked at the Ford Motor Company, then in 1914 there were already about 13 thousand!

The large mass of profits made it possible for Ford in 1914 to increase the wages of workers to five dollars a day, reducing the working day to eight hours (the average wage in the industry at the time was $2.34 for a nine-hour work). By the way, the establishment of an eight-hour working day allowed the industrialist to introduce three-shift, that is, round-the-clock work at his enterprises. In 1929, labor wages were raised to seven dollars a day. But in 1932, due to the economic crisis that broke out in the United States and the "great" depression that followed it, Henry Ford reduced it to four dollars.

However, the progressive and dynamic development of the Ford Motor Company was not "cloudless and enchanting." The automobile magnate at that time had to face many serious problems, both internal and external. Here is some of them.

In 1879, the American G. Selden applied for a patent for the idea of ​​​​an invention, which he formulated in the following words: "the construction of a simple, durable and cheap street locomotive, light in weight, easy to control and powerful enough to overcome average climbs." This application was officially registered, and in 1895 the Department of Privilege (as the American patent office was called at that time) issued a corresponding patent to G. Zelden.

It is noteworthy that the applicant did not provide any technical documentation, not even a drawing of the device that he wanted to patent. Even the most elementary common sense should have told the then officials, who, most likely, issued a patent to G. Selden, without even delving into the essence of the application, that it was pointless to issue a patent for something that had already been invented, because in 1885 a German engineer and inventor Karl Benz made the world's first three-wheeled car. And in 1886, another talented German, Gottlieb Daimler, already created a car on four wheels.

However, in the face of fierce market competition, when, as they say, "all means are good," Henry Ford's competitors, having secured the consent of the patent owner and pompously calling themselves the "Association of Licensed Manufacturers," filed a lawsuit against Ford Motor Company five weeks after the formation of the Ford Motor Company. , with the goal of banning Ford from making cars.

The trial went on for six years. Entire volumes of evidence were collected, convincingly and clearly showing that the "Selden patent" has nothing to do with the mass production of cars, and the very issuance of such a "document" is a gross bureaucratic error. However, in the trial court in 1909, Henry Ford lost.

An appeal was filed with the next court. While the retrial was going on, Ford's competitors began to spread the rumor that every owner of a car manufactured by the Ford Motor Company would be fined. In the end, in 1911, Ford won the case in the second instance! Nothing at that time contributed to the popularity of Henry Ford, as a creative person and the head of a prosperous enterprise, as he won this lawsuit!

But the intrigues of competitors were not the only problem in the development of the Ford Motor Company. As the enterprise expanded, tensions began to arise between Henry Ford and the main shareholders over the management of the firm. Ford, who had owned only 25.5 percent of the corporation's share capital since the founding of the corporation, believed that this was clearly not enough to successfully manage the company. In 1916, he acquired an additional number of shares, becoming the owner of a 51 percent stake in the enterprise (soon he increased it to 59 percent. The magnate's greatest desire was to obtain 100 percent control over the Ford Motor Company.

Some shareholders were dissatisfied with the fact that Henry Ford invests almost all of his profits in the development of production. So, the Dodge brothers in 1916 sued him, accusing him of the fact that the expansion of production entails a decrease in dividends to shareholders. This time Ford lost the lawsuit not only in the first instance in 1917, but in 1919 in the second instance as well. The court decision noted that Ford, first and foremost as the head of the enterprise, should have sought to ensure maximum profit for shareholders. By court order, he had to pay additional dividends to shareholders.

Dissatisfied, in his opinion, with an unfair court decision, being confident that the court and several shareholders were preventing him from managing the company and making decisions necessary for the prosperity of the Ford Motor Company, Henry Ford resigned from the post of president of the company in December 1918. , abandoning it in favor of his son Edsel. In the spring of 1919, he made a public statement saying that in soon is going to organize a new automobile company that will produce cars better and cheaper than the Ford T. When asked by journalists about how the Ford Motor Company would develop after his departure, Henry Ford arrogantly stated that he did not know what would happen to the company, but he knew for sure that that part of the enterprise that did not belong to him, cannot be sold to him.

Henry Ford's trick worked, and market price shares of the Ford Motor Company began to decline sharply. The Ford family took advantage of this: by July 1919, Edsel Ford bought the remaining 41 percent of the company's shares. The Ford family now had 100% control of one of the largest industrial enterprises in the world!

However, Henry Ford did not officially return to the Ford Motor Company. Until his death in 1943, his only son, Edsel, continued to hold the position of president of the corporation. However, the founder of the automotive industry did not retire - he was the de facto head of the family business.

Under his leadership, from 1918 to 1926, in the state of Michigan, near the Rouge River, located southeast of Detroit, a huge automobile factory complex was built, which later became known as the Rouge.

The construction of an automobile giant for the Ford Motor Company was an objective economic necessity, since the constant increase in the number of cars produced required more and more production areas. In addition, it was not uncommon at the Ford Motor Company when contractors did not deliver in time for assembly on the assembly line. necessary details and nodes, because they simply did not have time to produce them. To avoid interruptions in the supply of his enterprises by contractors, Henry Ford began to organize warehouse stocks of those components, the supply of which could be unexpectedly interrupted. Not only did their warehousing require additional large premises, but it also “frozen” significant working capital.

The automotive "king" wanted his production to be independent of suppliers. He aspired to ensure that the Ford Motor Company became a vertically built, uninterruptedly operating concern, which would own all the enterprises connected by a single technological process for the production of the finished product. To achieve this goal, iron ore deposits, coal mines, a glass factory, a sawmill with a forest plot of almost 200 thousand hectares, a railway and a fleet on the Great Lakes were acquired.

Henry Ford managed to build the factory he wanted. At the end of 1927, the first cars began to roll off the assembly line. automobile complex Rouge.

In 1931 and 1937, memorable dates were marked in the history of the Ford Motor Company: on April 14, 1931, the twenty millionth car was produced, and on January 18, 1937, the twenty-five millionth Ford rolled off the assembly line.

It seemed that nothing could impede the progressive development of a prosperous corporation. Its factories produced cars in Canada and England, in Belgium and Italy, in Japan and Germany. However, the outbreak of the Second World War made significant adjustments to the development plans of the Ford Motor Company, and in early 1942 the corporation stopped producing civilian cars, switching to the manufacture of military products. During World War II, Ford's factories produced 8,600 bombers, 57,000 aircraft engines, and 278,000 jeeps. The military products produced by the corporation greatly contributed to the defeat of fascist Germany.

1943 was a sad year for the Ford family. Edsel Ford died of stomach cancer at the age of forty-nine.

The relationship between father and son in different periods of Edsel's life evolved in different ways. At school, he studied only "excellent". Father and son went fishing together. They had no secrets from each other. Edsel always listened to the opinion of his great parent. Following the advice of his father, Edsel Ford did not go to university after graduation, but immediately went to work in a corporation. He even tried to imitate Henry Ford in clothes - he wore gray suits so beloved by the automobile “king”, colorful silk ties and, of course, patent leather shoes.

Edsel's dream was to create an exceptionally elegant, beautiful and aerodynamically well-faired sports car. Developing such a car, he could sit all night long in the design office, sketching whole piles of paper with sketches.

However, for a still unclear reason, in the mid-1920s, the relationship between father and son changed dramatically. Henry Ford, quite unexpectedly for everyone, began to cancel many of his son's orders, fire employees whom Edsel invited to work, and shout at him. Edsel Ford patiently endured all this, was very worried, but did not show that he was very offended by his father. In the late 30s, he began to complain of stomach pains. Doctors diagnosed that Ford Jr. was ill with an incurable disease - stomach cancer. He underwent surgery, but it only delayed his death by a few weeks.

After the death of his son in 1943, Henry Ford officially returned to work at the Ford Motor Company as president. But at the age of eighty it is difficult to manage one of the largest industrial firms in the world, and he decided to involve his grandson, also named Henry, in the management of the corporation.

AT last years of his life and especially in the period after the death of his only son Edsel and the arrival of his grandson Henry Ford II, the automobile "king", to the corporation big influence was provided by the head of the personnel service, G. Bennett. The former sailor and boxer, who started out as the tycoon's personal bodyguard, moved around the Ford Motor Company's headquarters with nothing more than two gorilla-like former boxers. G. Bennet himself, with his appearance, inspired disgust and horror to all relatives and households of the automobile "king", since his face with a broken nose was excised with scars and scars. Having become the head of the personnel service, he began to hire former criminals and boxers, and fire those who tried to prevent this. Such a “policy” for working with personnel, or rather the complete absence of such, began to lead to serious disruptions in the long-term and well-functioning work of the company's divisions. The “level” of work of the newly-minted personnel chief can be illustrated by the fact that G. Bennet used ... a colt as a paperweight! When he, along with all those whom he himself hired, was fired by Henry Ford II, he smashed everything that could be broken in his office, from the telephone to the closet!

Henry Ford II (1917-1987) did not have good academic performance during his school years, or rather, was an ordinary loser. In addition, he was a very distracted boy, forgetting at home either a pen or a textbook. Entering after graduation from the prestigious Yale University, he was never able to finish it. And the reason for this was the following event. Realizing that he would not be able to write a thesis, student Henry Ford ordered its writing (of course, under the guise of scientific and applied research, which he allegedly needed for work) ... to a consulting firm. However, his distraction played a cruel joke on him. Having handed over a custom-made “creation” as his thesis, Henry Ford II forgot to pull out a check for payment from it, which, unfortunately, lay between the very first pages of the “diploma”. A scandal broke out, as a result of which the young dodger had to part with Yale University forever.

At the same time, young Henry was a very sociable, charming and cheerful conversationalist and a good friend. He had many friends. He was neither a pompous arrogant nor an arrogant grouch. When guests came to him, he always fried steaks for them himself, and after the party he took his friends home. Young Henry Ford knew how to create a friendly, comradely atmosphere around him. He knew how to reconcile and rally people. In addition, Henry possessed a special and very rare quality - he had an unmistakable flair for new promising ideas and "efficient" people.

With the outbreak of World War II, Henry Ford II went to serve in the navy. In 1943, due to the death of his father, Edsel Ford, he interrupted his service and returned to civilian life to head the Ford Motor Company, which was not doing well. He was first elected vice president, and then in 1945 became president of the corporation, which he led until 1979.

1947 was a sad year for both the Ford family and the Ford Motor Company, for on April 7, at the age of 83, Henry Ford I died at his Fair Line estate near Dearborn, Michigan.

To be continued...

Henry Ford about business, money, cars and .... flowers

"When someone starts a conversation about the growing machine power and industry an image of a cold, metallic world easily arises before us, in which trees, flowers, birds, meadows are replaced by the grandiose factories of a world consisting of iron machines and human machines. I do not share this view. Moreover, I believe that if we do not learn how to use machines better, we will not have time to enjoy trees and birds, flowers and meadows.

Power and machinery, money and possessions are useful only insofar as they contribute to the freedom of life. They are only a means to an end. For example, I look at cars that bear my name, not only as cars. …To me they are clear proof of some business theory, which I hope is something more than a business theory, namely: a theory whose goal is to create a source of joys from the world. The fact of the extraordinary the success of the Ford Automobile Society is important in that he irrefutably shows how true my theory has been so far. Only with this premise can I judge the existing methods of production, finance and society from the point of view of man, by them not enslaved.

• Who is afraid of the future, i.e. failures, he himself limits the scope of his activities. Failure only gives you an excuse to start again and smarter. Honest failure is not shameful; disgraceful fear of failure.
• Put work for the common good above profit.
• A business that produces nothing but money is an empty business.
• Defeat is just an opportunity to start over, and this time more intelligently.
• When it seems that the whole world is against you - remember that the plane takes off against the wind.
• If you have enthusiasm, you can do anything. Enthusiasm is the basis of any progress.
• It seems that everyone was looking for the shortest road to money and at the same time bypassed the most direct one - the one that leads through work.
• The main use of capital is not to make more money, but to make money for the betterment of life.
• My secret to success lies in the ability to understand the other person's point of view and to look at things from both his and my own points of view.
• It is better to do your best to improve a good idea instead of chasing other, new ideas. A good idea gives just as much as you can handle at once.
• If there is any secret to success, it lies in the ability to take another person's point of view and see things from their point of view as well as from your own.
• Pay no attention to the competition. Let the one who does the job best do the work. An attempt to upset someone's affairs is a crime, for it means an attempt to upset the life of another person in the pursuit of profit and establish the rule of force instead of sound reason.
• It is natural to work in the mind that happiness and welfare mined only honest work. Human misfortunes are largely the result of an attempt to turn away from this natural path.
• A charitable organization that does not set itself the goal of becoming redundant in the future does not fulfill its true purpose. She is only obtains content for itself.
• The most risky business is to do business for pure profit. It's like a game of chance that you rarely play for more than a couple of years."

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