"I will admit this--I have never stepped foot into the Highland Park plant; I'm embarrassed to say," Ford said. "I'll have to take a tour of it one day."
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| Just like the Model T, Ford aims to create mass appeal with low cost vehicles in growing markets like China. (Photo: Michigan State Historic Preservation Office) |
Cracking into the auto markets of the developing world, as a source of future income, is another concern of all the car makers, Ford said. The key to do that is "to do exactly like how Henry Ford did. We had to do Model Ts to start in this country," and Ford has to do a mass appeal, low cost vehicle to succeed in other markets.
Ford Motor Company is unique in another aspect, it is the only major automaker that began in the early part of the century where a member of the founding family is still at the helm (Bill Ford Jr.), Edsel Ford said.
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| The Ford family ownership "shields the employees; shields the company from being bought out." (Photo: Model T Ford Club of America) |
The Ford family retains its control over the company through a Class A, Class B stock structure, where the family owns less than 10 percent of the shares of the common stock, but retains control of 40 percent of the voting stock. That stock structure "shields the employees; shields the company from being bought out," Ford said.
Some say this stock structure may also give the Ford family members a leg up in the company, but Edsel Ford said, "My father (Henry Ford II) once said to me, 'Edsel, there's not going to be a crowned prince at Ford Motor Company.' So, you can be a family member, but if you're not willing to work hard and put in extra hours and extra effort and extra time then you better seek alternative work."
On the other hand, he noted, "you can't assume that a member of the family can't be a good manager. It depends on who they are and how hard they work."