Process Paper
Henry Ford: Leadership and Legacy
Pablo Corcoran
Senior Division
Website
I chose my topic based off of what was most interesting to me. I find automobiles interesting and I immediately looked for significant leaders in the industry. Henry Ford, being one of the most famous people in the auto industry seemed like the perfect choice. He had definitely left a legacy behind in his company and his decisions, and he could be seen as controversial. He is an iconic historical figure in America, an industrial giant, yet disliked by many, making him infamous despite his contributions to the auto industry and mass production. As the owner of Ford Motor Co. he was definitely a leader, guiding his tens of thousands of workers to help him build a legacy that would live on to this very day.
I conducted research by looking for various aspects of his legacy, including high wages, the moving assembly line/mass production, contributions to WWII, and an infamous past of Antisemitism. I researched these parts of his legacy by searching for sources based on each of these subtopics. I found plenty of source on his legacy, as well as some on his leadership style and values. This helped me explain how he was a leader in industry and how he affected his workers. I also found various sources exclusively for quotes and/or pictures. This helped add to the website visually and contextually.
I chose my presentation category by what I was most experienced and skilled at. The only two I had any experience making were exhibits and websites. I chose a website over an exhibit because I'm not very artistic and I have created more websites than exhibits. A website also is capable of having a lot more elements than other categories. It's completely online, so it can display pictures, quotes, and even videos. This helps keep it more interesting for the audience while they are reading the research, and helps them better understand the topic that's presented.
My project relates to the NHD theme Leadership and Legacy because Henry Ford was a leader in business, as the president of his company, Ford Motor Company, and he left behind a legacy in many different ways. He was an industrial genius, implementing new ideas and strategies and using them not for his profit, but to the benefit of his workers and customers. His tradition of building a company based on paying high wages, selling affordable products at the highest quality possible spread to other businesses and was applied to much more than automobiles, and his same ideas were used in all branches of industry.
Word Count: 426
Pablo Corcoran
Senior Division
Website
I chose my topic based off of what was most interesting to me. I find automobiles interesting and I immediately looked for significant leaders in the industry. Henry Ford, being one of the most famous people in the auto industry seemed like the perfect choice. He had definitely left a legacy behind in his company and his decisions, and he could be seen as controversial. He is an iconic historical figure in America, an industrial giant, yet disliked by many, making him infamous despite his contributions to the auto industry and mass production. As the owner of Ford Motor Co. he was definitely a leader, guiding his tens of thousands of workers to help him build a legacy that would live on to this very day.
I conducted research by looking for various aspects of his legacy, including high wages, the moving assembly line/mass production, contributions to WWII, and an infamous past of Antisemitism. I researched these parts of his legacy by searching for sources based on each of these subtopics. I found plenty of source on his legacy, as well as some on his leadership style and values. This helped me explain how he was a leader in industry and how he affected his workers. I also found various sources exclusively for quotes and/or pictures. This helped add to the website visually and contextually.
I chose my presentation category by what I was most experienced and skilled at. The only two I had any experience making were exhibits and websites. I chose a website over an exhibit because I'm not very artistic and I have created more websites than exhibits. A website also is capable of having a lot more elements than other categories. It's completely online, so it can display pictures, quotes, and even videos. This helps keep it more interesting for the audience while they are reading the research, and helps them better understand the topic that's presented.
My project relates to the NHD theme Leadership and Legacy because Henry Ford was a leader in business, as the president of his company, Ford Motor Company, and he left behind a legacy in many different ways. He was an industrial genius, implementing new ideas and strategies and using them not for his profit, but to the benefit of his workers and customers. His tradition of building a company based on paying high wages, selling affordable products at the highest quality possible spread to other businesses and was applied to much more than automobiles, and his same ideas were used in all branches of industry.
Word Count: 426