Harley-Davidson
More than a Motorcycle
Harley-Davidson’s history began with five men exploring their idea of internal combustion in a shed. Impressively, the ideas of these men evolved into an organization whose products now travel over 100,000 miles (see a detailed account of Harley Davidson’s history here). Today, Harley Davidson is an international business that has perfected the art of selling motorcycles. However, they provide much more than motorcycles to their customers. In fact, take a look at Harley’s vision, mission, and quality statements below:
These statements provide a great idea about the type of company Harley Davidson is. Notice, nowhere in these statements does the company talk about selling motorcycles. Harley Davidson has evolved into a company that truly sells experiences. It is a company that creates communities—communities with diverse members, a change from the typical white middle aged man they used to target. To better explain this, please view the video below:
- Vision: We fulfill dreams inspired by the many roads of the world by providing remarkable motorcycles and extraordinary customer experiences. We fuel the passion for freedom in our customers to express their own identity.
- Mission: We ride with our customers and apply this deep connection in every market we serve to create superior value for all of our stakeholders.
- Quality Mission: Customers for life… Harley-Davidson values the deep emotional connection that is created with our customers through our products, services and experiences. We are fueled by the brand loyalty and trust that our customers place in us to deliver premium quality and the promise of a fulfilling lifetime ownership experience. We exemplify this commitment by embracing a culture of personal responsibility and stewardship for quality in everything we do.
These statements provide a great idea about the type of company Harley Davidson is. Notice, nowhere in these statements does the company talk about selling motorcycles. Harley Davidson has evolved into a company that truly sells experiences. It is a company that creates communities—communities with diverse members, a change from the typical white middle aged man they used to target. To better explain this, please view the video below:
Harley Riders
Harley Davidson riders unite across the world. For example, the Harley Facebook page has over 3,000,000 likes. Harley encourages these groups; in fact, when one purchases their first motorcycle from Harley, they receive a one year free membership pass to the "Harley Ownership Group," most commonly referred to as HOG. However, more recently, Harley has organized additional rider groups such as Women Riders and Harlistas, focused on Latino Harley riders. These new groups may seem obvious, but are splendid developments as the company grows beyond their reputation as a company that produces bikes for white old guys with a seat on the back for women. They have approached new customer segments as one of their strategies to keep growing as an organization. Take a look at one of their commercials aimed towards women here.
Changing Gears
Not only is Harley changing in the customers that they market to, but recently in their history they have changed their organizational structure as well. Harley's organization is now based on a three-circle ven diagram structure. This method was erected when Harley went through cultural and financial issues during the 1990s. The three circles are titled the Create Demand Circle, the Produce Products Circle, and the Support Circle. The area where the circles intersect represent the Leadership and Strategy Council. President at the time of the changes, Jeff Bleustein, said in an interview with Fast Company that the new organization is simple: "we're applying the concept of self-directed work teams used in the factories to the executive level." Another CEO, Rich Teerlink, also shares how the idea behind this system was to,
"get the right people, together at the right time, to do the right work right. We wanted teamwork without the teams and the idea of natural work groups emerged" (Ozley). The circle organization is based around the core processes at Harley--create demand, produce product, and provide support--which are depicted by three interlocking circles. This is a more accurate representation of the shared leadership and cross-functionality at work in Harley-Davidson."
"get the right people, together at the right time, to do the right work right. We wanted teamwork without the teams and the idea of natural work groups emerged" (Ozley). The circle organization is based around the core processes at Harley--create demand, produce product, and provide support--which are depicted by three interlocking circles. This is a more accurate representation of the shared leadership and cross-functionality at work in Harley-Davidson."
Culture
As discussed in my blog, an organization's culture is a key to its success. According to Angie Ziegler, Director of Leadership Development for Harley, culture is something Harley as a whole has been placing great focus on lately. Leadership at the organization realized that their culture was not about "work we do, but how we do it," Ziegler said in a presentation to our class (Ziegler). She discussed how during the 1990s, the high productivity levels at Harley left little time to focus on the culture, and it was apparent that values were not a large part of the work there. Since then, leaders at Harley have been working towards an improved culture and value system at Harley organizations worldwide. Harley's culture now reflects their belief that, "people are our only long term competitive advantage." This topic is discussed more in my blog and the comparison page.
Harley Davidson Museum
Harley Davidson opened up a museum to display their history in 2008. The Museum has various exhibits exemplifying the numerous products they have created thus far. One of the exhibits at the museum now is is called Custom Culture and is "dedicated to the personal expression and creativity that permeates the Harley-Davidson culture...from stripped-down bikes to attire with attitude, these nonconformists unknowingly created an 'outlaw' image." Some other exhibits the museum displays are: Worn to be Wild, Journey of the Iron Elite, Clubs & Competition, Design Lab, and many more!
Sturgis Motorcycle Rally
Thinking of vacationing to Mount Rushmore this summer? If you are looking for a peaceful drive through the black hills, check your calendar! Every August Harley-Davidson sponsors the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for which over 415,367 travel to Sturgis, South Dakota. This is just one of the many events that take place throughout the year for Harley owners and has been referred to as the "Mardi Gras" for bikers. What exactly goes on at Sturgis is known to only those who attend--the data available online is staggeringly limited due to the "what happens in Sturgis, stays in Sturgis" motto.
Ozley, Lee. "More Than a Motorcycle: The Leadership Journey at Harley-Davidson." Harvard Business Review . 05 Sep 2000: n. page. Web. 25 Apr. 2012.
Ziegler , Angie . "One Company. One Team. One Direction." Organization and Behavior Lecture . Marquette University, Milwaukee . 4 April 2012. Address.
Ziegler , Angie . "One Company. One Team. One Direction." Organization and Behavior Lecture . Marquette University, Milwaukee . 4 April 2012. Address.