ponent manufacturing operation with annual sales of nearly $18 billion. Future Plans:According to the company, Ford’s prime focus in the 21st Century will be on the consumer. Ford’s management stated, “Our vision is to be the world’s leading consumer company that provides automotive products and services.” In addition, Ford has made a deal with Microsoft in an effort to take advantage of the MSN CarPoint service. In addition, Ford recently announced an agreement with Yahoo! which will allow car owners to register their cars online. Their plans project that cars will be able to connect within 3 years. That online service is known as “24-7.” With this service car owners will see such benefits as: being able to get service reminders, information on credit accounts; and real-time traffic reports. Voice-activated Internet access is also projected to be available within 3 years. With that service, things like email capabilities and direction retrieval will be possible in a “hands-free” atmosphere. Ford is also trying to expand in the area of e-commerce. Their focus is on five areas: Telematics, Business to Consumer, Customer acquisition, Customer retention, and Business to Business. Ford is striving to make advances that will keep it competitive in a global market during the information revolution.Financial Analysis: GeneralFord has shown a steady pattern of sales growth from 1994 to 1997, growing at 5-7% each year. However, in 1998 sales were down 6%. In 1999, sales were up 14% from the previous year, giving them an average over the 94-99 period of 5.4% growth. Profit margin has remained steady, always ranging between 7% and 9%, slightly above the industry average. Cost of goods sold has remained around 72%, which shows consistency within Ford’s manufacturing plants. Ford’s borrowing can be explained by its leverage ratios. Ford’s debt ratio has rem...
