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FORD, HENRY.
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Life & career of auto maker, charismatic leadership, innovations, stubbornness.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Life & career of auto maker, charismatic leadership, innovations, stubbornness.

Paper Introduction:
Henry Ford and Charismatic Leadership Henry Ford was born in 1863 to parents shaped by the recent immigration experience: his mother, Mary, was born in a Belgian family and raised by an Irish immigrant family, while his father, William, immigrated with his family from Ireland at the age of 21, after being evicted from their farm by their English landlord. The Protestant Fords did not settle in the eastern cities with the Catholic Irish but continued moving west, driven by the promise of land ownership in Michigan (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, pp. 16-17). In William's mind, the ability to own the land one worked was Americals greatest virtue, setting it apart from Ireland (Halberstam, 1986, p. 51). Try as he might, William could never impress this salient virtue on his oldest son, Henry. Henry detested farming,

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Kets de Vries. AmericanHeritage, pp. Originally consistingof basic common sense and truisms, his sayings eventually degenerated intononsense and anti-semitic ranting (Halberstam, 1986, p. After William died, Henry projected their conflict onto others withinthe company, again similar to Luther (Zaleznik, 1974, pp. Charismatic and Consensual Leaders: APsychological Comparison. Citizen Ford. His ultimate goal was practical transportation; inorder to reach this goal, however, he had to engage in such distastefulactivities as building a racing car and racing it himself in order to gainpublicity for his products (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. Winer, J. ed. 41-2).Ultimately, however, this vision nearly ruined the Ford Motor Company whenHenry refused to adjust to a changing market and replace the Model T(Halberstam, 1986, p. Anonly child, Edsel was raised within the community of the Ford MotorCompany, never doubting where his future lay. Halberstam, D. The Protestant Fords did not settlein the eastern cities with the Catholic Irish but continued moving west,driven by the promise of land ownership in Michigan (Collier and Horowitz,1987, pp. This disagreement intensifiedwhen Mary Ford died in childbirth, an event Henry blamed on his father;their subsequent relationship alternated between conflict and truce untilWilliam's death in 19 3 (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. Academy of Management Executive 4, 7-22.----------------------- 8 One historian has said that Henry displayed a self-destructivenessthat was never matched in any other giant American corporation; havingcreated the company, Henry apparently felt that he also had the right todestroy it (Halberstam, 1986, p. 64). F. (October/November 1986). (m)y father just walked into that place" (Collierand Horowitz, 1987, p. William Ford, in turn, thought that Henry was, andalways would be, a failure; of the automobile, William said, "You'll nevermake a go of it .... 37). References Collier, P., and Horowitz, D. A., Jobe, T., and Ferrono, C. Toward aPsychoanalytic Theory of the Charismatic Relationship. By the time of theDepression, Ford had turned against the working men themselves, fosteringfear and suspicion in the company and fighting unions with hired thugs. 6 ). As will be seen below, Ford exhibited manycharacteristics which caused Ford employees and members of the generalpublic to regard him as a corporate and public leader. He much preferred the study and repair of allthings mechanical, an activity praised by his mother but scorned by hisfather if it did not involve farm machinery. ed. 6 ). Inaddition, he was willing to move back in with his father to save moneywhile building his first few models (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. 49-64. 6 ). Inresponse, Henry expanded the power of Harry Bennett, originally head ofsecurity at the company and a ruffian who boasted of underworldconnections, and pitted him against Edsel (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, pp.152-3; Halberstam, 1986, p. Ford's public utterances reflected the state of his mind; throughoutthe 192 's the Ford Motor Company fell behind General Motors both in salesand in earnings as GM introduced new technology and more appealing models.In addition, the company itself fell into disarray as Henry pittedexecutives against each other and let the accounting system flounder inorder to confuse the IRS (Halberstam, 1986, p. (1974). It is often said that leadership is based upon a compact binding theleader and the followers, a compact arising either out of tradition or thepersonal qualities of the leader (Zaleznik, 199 , p. 115-6).This framework fits Ford very well, for he never doubted his purpose in thegreater scheme of the world and conflict was an integral part of his life.His main conflict, as stated above, was with his father; his encouragementcame from his mother. 9). 37), aswell as forego financing from some wealthy individuals when he felt that hewas losing control of his venture (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, pp. R. 12). In the case ofHenry Ford, the leadership compact surely arose out of Ford's personalqualities, there existing no tradition which conferred any sort ofauthority on him. Zaleznik alsopointed out that this leadership compact disintegrates when the leaderceases to demonstrate these qualities (199 , p. In William's mind, the ability to own the land oneworked was Americals greatest virtue, setting it apart from Ireland(Halberstam, 1986, p. In theclassic framework, an individual became a leader by first undergoing apersonal crisis which rendered him helpless, then undergoing a change whichrendered him powerful, and finally emerging as a leader during a time ofcrisis (Winer, Jobe, Ferrono; 1984; pp. 2 1). 24).Working in machine shops, he acquired knowledge about many types ofmachines; he eventually went to work for Detroit Edison, becoming the chiefmechanic within one year. M. Experimenting with gasoline powered automobilesstarting in 1893, he drove his first automobile around Detroit on June 4,1896 (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, P. 12). TheLeadership Gap. When anexecutive grew powerful enough to challenge his authority Henry wouldelevate another individual to the same status and then play the two offeach other (Halberstam, 1986, 59). Henry Ford and Charismatic Leadership Henry Ford was born in 1863 to parents shaped by the recentimmigration experience: his mother, Mary, was born in a Belgian family andraised by an Irish immigrant family, while his father, William, immigratedwith his family from Ireland at the age of 21, after being evicted fromtheir farm by their English landlord. Although used in classicalmyths and projected onto ancient leader figures, this framework was notvery useful in describing more modern leaders who attained power throughpersonality. 67-8). (1965) The Fords; An American Epic.New York: Summit Books. New York: Oxford University Press. 115); sixty years after his mother'sdeath, Henry would remark to an acquaintance that the Ford homestead was"my mother's home .... 22). 58). Probably the most extreme example ofthis need for conflict was Henry's relationship with his son Edsel. Essays in Sociology. Hunt, S. W.Mills. Ford's strong inner life was exhibited by his willingness to pursuehis vision of a gasoline-powered automobile for a number of years andthrough hard times. 16-17). In: Leadership: Multidisciplinary Perspectives, ed. 156-8). Ford was never rendered helpless by a personal crisis, nordid he emerge during a time of national crisis; instead, he fulfilled adesire to change the lives of individuals by making a gasoline engine dothe work of a horse (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p.29). M. Zaleznik, A. 22). By the start of the Second World War,Bennett exercised such influence over Henry that he was able to directlyconfront Edsel over control of the company. After his father died, Henry felt somewhatcheated out of a vindication in his father's eyes, wishing that his father"could have lived to see what happened" (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p.48). Before that issue could besettled, Edsel died of stomach cancer at the age of 49. A charismaticleader is one who is followed because of peculiar powers and uniquequalities, appearing most often during times of crisis and emerging fromthe masses or the margins of the social world (Hunt, 1984, 161). (January 1984). 115-6). In Ford's case thisdisintegration started to occur in the mid-192 's as Ford failed toaccommodate changes in technology and the public's taste in cars, whilecementing his power within the company by pitting executives against eachother. 19-2 ; Halberstam, 1986, p. This conflict seems to parallel the suggested oedipal conflicts ofMartin Luther (Zaleznik, 1974, p. The Role of Leadership in the Construction ofReality. 61). After two unsuccessful tries atmanufacturing autos (both companies dissolving after disputes with thefinancial backers) Henry started constructing the Model A in 19 3; in 1913,the Ford Motor Company began building and selling the Model T, selling 15million of them by 1928 (Halberstam, 1986, p. Weber, M. (t)hey'll never sell" (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p.37). The Annual ofPsychoanalysis 12-13, 155-75. At that point, thecompany was committed to very large war orders, but was in such bad shapethat the government allowed Henry Ford II to leave the Navy and take overthe company. (1984). 58). When Edsel was young, Henrywas determined to avoid the kind of relationship he had experienced withhis own father; doting on Edsel and bringing the boy to the factory everyday (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. H. Try as he might, William could never impress this salient virtue onhis oldest son, Henry. Ironically, Henry II would forever blame his grandfather forEdsel's death (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. 51). New York:International Universities Press, 112-31. (199 ). Zaleznik, A. Henry detested farming, remarking that"(c)onsidering the results there is altogether too much work" (Collier andHorowitz, 1987, p. H. In: The Irrational Executive; PsychoanalyticExplorations in management. B.Kellerman, 157-178. (1972). Probably the best known leadership theories concern "charismatic"leaders, first articulated by Max Weber in the 19th century. Gerth and C. In 1913 he introduced the modern assembly line and increased the Fordworkers' wages to $5 per day; so as not to lead his workers into depravitywith the money, Ford established the Ford Sociological Department to keeptrack of the workers and instruct them on how to live (Collier andHorowitz, 1987, pp. 21). Possessing the competence and foresight to know thathis father's ways were hurting the company, Edsel frequently sought toupdate the cars and introduce new models which showed some promise. One morning, when Henry was 17, he set of for school with his youngerbrothers; rather than make the turn off for school, however, he continuedwalking along the road to Detroit (Collier and Horowitz, 1987, p. Heharassed and humiliated his only son Edsel, who was supposed to take overthe company when Henry died; in any event, Edsel died in 1943, fours yearsbefore Henry. 62). A more modern framework explaining the charismatic leader focuses onconflict in the individuals life and the development of a strong inner lifewhich cements the individuals self-identity (Zaleznik, 1974, pp. As Edsel came into his own in thecompany, however, Henry slowly turned on him, checking his progress atalmost every venture. Drawing on his mother and the McGuffey Readerfor his wisdom, Ford became a celebrity philosopher, with reportersliterally hanging around his office, quoting his every word (Collier andHorowitz, 1987, pp.

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