In 1919, Erle P. Halliburton established the new method of an oil well cementing company in Oklahoma City. This was the start to Halliburton’s extensive timeline. Today Halliburton provides services for the petroleum and energy industries (Business Source Complete, 1998). From 1994, the company’s revenue rose from $5.9 billion to $14.9 billion in 1999 (Bruno & Valette, 2001). During this time Dick Cheney was the CEO of the Halliburton organization. In this time the company’s overseas operation grew from 51% to 68% (Bruno & Valette, 2001). Mr. Cheney has receive must credit for this massive success.
Furthermore, Halliburton provides an extensive range of services from engineering to oil refining.
Halliburton has one of the world’s largest infrastructures. According to Bruno & Valette, Halliburton is the world’s largest diversified energy services, engineering, construction and maintenance company. “The diversified revenue stream makes Halliburton less susceptible to a downturn in any one market or division” (Data Monitor Plc, 2007). Halliburton has almost 100,000 employees and 7,000 customers in more than 120 countries (Bruno & Valette, 2001).
Halliburton management planning skills has helped the organization grow into the largest provider of services in the construction and oil industry offer all over the world. However, Halliburton faces several ethical dilemmas that may lead to the down fall of their massive organization or it could just fuel their way to more power. Let use examine the history of Halliburton to the present as we take into account the choice made by the organization to increase its revenue and grow as a company.
Halliburton’s strategic vision is to “…continue to set the company apart from the competitors. Driven by a passion for excellence, a commitment to finding the best solution for the customer… the legacy of our founders (Halliburton, 2008).” Halliburton’s vision statement is inspirational. According to Bateman and Snell the most effective vision statements inspire organizational members (Bateman & Snell 2007). The start of a successful organization is a well though out vision statement. Halliburton has set themselves apart from other organizations that are in the same industry just by their vision statement being so touching and heart felt.
Furthermore, Halliburton organization took several steps to becoming a larger service provider by purchasing Brown & Root, an engineering and construction company (Halliburton 2008). This was one of the many strategic plans that expanded services and increase revenue. This purchase increased the company’s stakeholder’s existence and it also put Halliburton’s organization on the map for being a more powerful, resourceful organization.
In 1962, Halliburton and Dresser Industries integrated to provide more efficient services for their customers (Halliburton 2007). Dresser had acquired M.W. Kellogg, a leader in petroleum refining and petroleum processing technology, extensive knowledge and expertise in the petroleum industry (Halliburton 2007). With Halliburton expertise in engineering, construction, and oil; paired with Dresser’s knowledge in petroleum refining and petroleum processing technology, makes an unbeatable team. This team offered major innovations to the industry.
Innovation forces the four functions of manage to continuously change and implement new ways of reaching the company’s goals. The top executives analyzed the situation and came up with new goals. The next step was to analyze those goals and organize them in a way that the company can benefits from. Halliburton innovation to the engineering, construction, refining and petroleum processing industry has shown its benefits by its revenues.
Halliburton and Dresser paired and made a partnership that only brought success and media attention.
However, in 1998, the two forces separated (Halliburton 2008). Each pursued separate ventures. Halliburton continue to provide services in engineering, construction, and oil. From this time Halliburton has obtained several major contracts that have increased the revenue and the global span of their organization.
Furthermore, the organization’s balance of the “Big Five” personality traits leads to a productive work atmosphere (Griffin 2007). According to Ricky M. Griffin, experts believe that personality traits that lean toward the more positive side of each of the five traits are more productive in an organizational setting (Griffin).
Halliburton has also used “Groupthink” make major decisions. Halliburton management made managerial decision that has given the organization almost a century of on going business. Do to the management team efforts Halliburton has made decisions to best reach the organizational goals.
However, Halliburton has received a lot of criticism due to contracts that took place overseas. Halliburton has been accused of taking part in shooting of a protesting villager overseas, undermining American foreign policy (Bruno & Valette, 2001), and abuse to inhabitants in Burma (Bruno & Valette, 2001). Issues like these go on and on.
Halliburton has faced several ethnical dilemmas as they increased the work, or rather the contracts they received from overseas. The most devastating issues are the litigations that the organization watch women get rape, people forced to work and even murdered if they did not cooperate with the invaders. “An ERI investigation concluded that construction and operation of the pipelines has involved the use of forced labor, forced relocation and even murder, torture and rape (Bruno & Valette, 2001j).” Wendy Hall, a spokeswomen for Halliburton, claimed that Halliburton does not do business in Burma but a number of pipeline and other projects in Burma where built by Halliburton’s organization (Bruno & Valette, 2001).
Ethical issues like the Burma issue are only the ones that have been uncovered. It just goes to show everyone how money and power can get an organization away with almost anything. How long before a massive organization, that reigns almost in every part of the world, fall?
Another question to ask is why haven’t an organization like Halliburton fallen already? One reason most organization last so long is because of they analyze their external and internal environment. SWOT analysis is an assessment taken of an organization’s strengths, weakness, opportunities, and treats (Bateman & Snell, 2007). According to Data monitor, Halliburton strengths are they have a diversified revenue stream, have expertise in setting up LNG plants (Data Monitor Plc, 2007).
Data monitor goes further to report Halliburton’s weaknesses as having lower margins compared to other industry, poor performance in Iraq and Kuwait, and they may be subjected to criminal investigation (Data Monitor Plc, 2007). Data monitor reports Halliburton’s opportunities as a positive outlook for the global oil and gas sector, in demand for environmental services, increase in demand for natural gas, and the shifting of operations to United Arab Emirates (UAE) (Data Monitor Plc, 2007). Further more, Data monitor reports Halliburton’s threats as political instability, environmental regulations, and termination of government contracts (Data Monitor Plc, 2007).
However, according to Griffin, Halliburton’s organization is so big that it has an internal auditing staff that spends all of its time performing audits throughout the organizations divisions. This internal audit division of Halliburton helps to stay in compliance with the law congress passed in 2002, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires CEOs and CFOs to take full responsibility of the organization’s financial statements (Griffin).
Halliburton’s management team has made choices that have accelerated the company’s name and revenue. On the other hand, Halliburton has made some unethical decision that has gotten the company in the public’s eye. This attention has not diminished the company business rates or growth. The success of the company is remarkable. Through the organizational tactics and the strategic plans the company will continue to grow and profit.
References
Bateman, T., & Snell, S. (2007). Management: leading and collaborating in a competitive world (7th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Business Source Complete. (1998, November). Dresser merger with Halliburton completed. Retrieved December 03, 2008, from ESBCO: www. http://www.apollolibrary.com/LTT
Bruno, K., & Valette, J. (2001, May). Cheney & Halliburton:Going Where the Oil Is. Retrieved December 09, 2008, from ESBCO.
Data Monitor Plc. (2008, November 2008). Halliburton Company SWOT ANALYSIS. Retrieved November 29, 2008, from Data Monitor: www.datamonitor.com
Griffin, Ricky W. Principles of Management, Student Acheivement Series. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2007.
Halliburton. (2007). Halliburton. Retrieved December 9, 2008, from Halliburton: http://www.halliburton.com/Default.aspx?navid=338&pageid=713