Describe the entrepreneurial aspect of the movie?
In the assigned History Channel video, How Henry Ford Built the Model T, the entrepreneurial aspect of the video is how innovation can change society forever. Decades of unprecedented growth in human innovation turned the United States into an industrial superpower through some of the world’s largest corporations like US Steel, General Electric, and Standard Oil. Even though monopolies are not prevalent today, long ago, those monopolies broke up and now still hold ties and power to today’s big corporations like Exxon and Chevron gas station companies. The video explains how these men’s visions helped Henry Ford’s Model T revolutionize society into what it is today. The age of monopolies is now over. Or so one may think. Standard Oil gas stations started to pop up across the nation that was fueling Ford Motor cars that were built using Carnegie steel in factories powered by J.P. Morgan’s electricity. A new era of businessmen was created, but their innovations would not be possible without the groundwork that men like John Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, and Andrew Carnegie had laid out through their innovations.
Why is the video interesting?
The video by The History Channel, The Men Who Built America; How Henry Ford Invented the Model T, discusses early entrepreneurs like John Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, and J.P Morgan, all had an influence or lead hand in what we use daily in the present time. I find it fascinating that America was brought into the 20th century all because of these entrepreneurs like Andrew Carnegie, John Rockefeller, and Henry Ford created an innovation that changed and brought society towards fourth the future of what we see today, like cell phones, the car you drive, the house you live in, and so on. The innovations of those men like Andrew Carnegie, John Rockefeller, and J.P. Morgan created the American industrial revolution that helped create the middle class that helped cumulate America’s wealth that we know today. Even though monopolies are not prevalent today, long ago, those monopolies broke up and now still hold ties and power to today’s big corporations. Another interesting topic is big-name businessmen like Andrew Carnegie and John Rockefeller, that had done unethical business practices, used blackmail and intimidation to receive refinery deals that left refiners out of business and decided to start giving back to others. John Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie used their wealth for good use by investing in Philanthropy events and giving back the community.
The Entrepreneurial aspect of the video:
The aspect of how entrepreneurship and innovation can bring revolution and evolution to society to better the lives of the people. The young entrepreneur, Henry Ford, has made a new kind of car that is for the average everyday consumer. Ford spent many years developing an automobile that was built for the common man. At the age of thirty-three, Ford built his first model called the quadricycle. The quadricycle, however, was too expensive to produce and had a high risk of breaking down. To find a way to produce a more efficient and less expensive automobile, Henry Ford created the Model A automobile that was more efficient and suitable for the needs of modern Americans at the time. The only thing that is in Ford’s way of producing and selling the Model A is ALAM. After months of deliberation, ALAM rejected Henry Ford’s application. The driver is Alexanders Winton, who is known as the fastest driver and is an influential member of ALAM. Henry Ford beats Alexander Winton in the race with his own car that he made compared to a professional race car. This leads to Henry Ford becoming a celebrity overnight, attracting investors to invest in his company, Ford Motor Company. Ford raises $24,000 to build Ford Motor Company’s first automobile factory in Highland Park, Michigan. Ford Motor Company found an efficient way to produce 15 cars a day that was priced low enough for a high percentage of the average everyday American to afford a car. Ford Motor Company begins to gain attention from the good and bad. ALAM noticed how successful Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company could be and filed a lawsuit against Henry Ford, claiming he breached ALAM’s patent on the car and asking for royalties off every car manufactured by Ford Motors. The entrepreneurial spirit of Henry Ford knew that the royalties would only increase the cost of his car for consumers, which would put the Ford Motor Company out of touch with the average consumer because they would not be able to comfortably afford the Model A car. Henry Ford saw an opportunity with the lawsuit of ALAM. Henry Ford was an anti-monopolist man, unlike John Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie. The court ruled in favor of Henry Ford because ALAM has no legal claim to the patent of the car. Henry Ford can now free to innovate without repercussion of any legal claims. Ford brought anti-monopolist practice into his Ford Motor factories as well by paying employees a livable wage of $5 per day. That was double the rate of employee wages in US factories at the time. Henry Ford found the perfect way to balance mass production. Not only did Ford pay his workers more, but he created a system for producing cars in the same amount of time but double the quantity output by cars assembled by a line of workers working on the car piece by piece, known today as the assembly line that influenced the way of manufacturing forever. Using the assembly line system, it took Ford Motor Company to manufacture and assemble a car in an hour and a half in large quantities. This system also influenced Henry Ford to construct the eight-hour workdays, five days a week work schedule. Society affects, stifles, or supports the aspect of entrepreneurship, and innovation can bring revolution and evolution to society to better the lives of the people. Without the help of employees, managers, CEOs, and entrepreneurs, America would not be what it is today. In the 20th century, new technologies were being innovated and used in factories across America, allowing the United States to outproduce any other nation in this world during the 20th century, which has set a path to how powerful the United States is today. Society is the consumers, the ones that determine the value of any type of product or service. The aspect of entrepreneurship and innovation that can bring revolution and evolution to society to better the lives of the people in society is vividly clear in Henry Ford’s entrepreneurial spirit by wanting to bring a product to the people by creating a car that was affordable for every man. Henry Ford sees another opportunity and chases it. Ford Motors started to manufacture a revolutionary car at a record rate called the Model T, which only cost $825. For the first time in history, a car was affordable. Henry Ford created the most important industry in the American economy that brought value to the U.S. market. Henry Ford also influenced other innovators like childhood friends William Harley and Arthur Davidson got the idea to attach an engine to bicycles and began to sell motorcycles. Other big manufacturers like Milton Hershey applied Henry Ford’s assembly line model to Hershey factories to produce mass production of chocolate. A Hollywood makeup artist Max Factor started to distribute the cosmetics products used by movie stars to local or large drug stores across America, helping create a new consumer product and market, makeup. All these businessmen have one thing in common, and they have produced their products for the masses while paying employees livable wages in safe work environments and working a set standard of forty-hour work weeks. This made the lives of everyone involved in the company of Ford Motors easier and more affordable.
