Ford Electric Vehicles: Traversing the Product Life Cycle

Jim Farley, Ford CEO, saw a difference in electric vehicle (EV) customers as the industry moved from early adopters to early majority. In late 2023, Ford had lost a stunning $1.3B on EVs during the prior 12 months and was now postponing investments in EV factories and cutting its EV production. With the EV marketplace apparently facing the proverbial chasm of transitioning from early adopters to the early majority, this critical incident illustrates the difficulties of moving through the Product Life Cycle (PLC), the Innovation-Adoption Curve (IAC), and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM).