Organizational CommunicationsPart I: Description of the Organization
Tesla is a niche-market company organization that manufactures electric vehicles and batteries to advance the green energy movement in the modern world. Guided by the vision of the CEO, Elon Musk, Tesla began its car business by provided luxury brand vehicles under two models, the Tesla Model X and the Tesla Model S. Recently, the company has been working on mass production of a lower-priced brand, the Tesla Model 3, for consumers not in the market for luxury vehicles. Tesla’s mission statement is: “to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport by bringing compelling mass market electric cars to market as soon as possible” (Tesla, 2013). At the core of its business is the concept of providing a product that promotes sustainability and that does not rely upon the burning of fossil fuels for vehicle transportation. Tesla’s electric vehicles are battery powered rather than gas powered, which is how Tesla aims to support the sustainability initiative. Evans (2017) points out that “sustainability is the ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
To support its mission, Tesla also purchased Solar City, a solar panel producing company, in an effort to broaden its scope and incorporate the solar panel business into its own productions. By promoting itself as a company that is dedicated to the use of green or renewable energy, Tesla has found support from consumers who are interested in investing in a business that takes sustainability seriously and makes it the heart of its enterprise. So far, Tesla has succeeded in winning supporters, with its stock price soaring exponentially in recent years. However,...
One appealing aspect of Tesla’s cars, aside from their battery power, is the self-driving capability that they are supposed to possess. By putting the car on autopilot, it should navigate traffic and get the individual to the destination safely. However, accidents and deaths have occurred while Tesla cars’ autopilot was engaged, which has raised alarms about its dependability. To address this situation, Musk himself has used social media to calm the fears of the public, demonstrating how the autopilot works with himself sharing a ride in a Tesla with another passenger. By uploading videos to Twitter and posting terse messages about how he expects the company to be cash flow positive by Q3 or Q4 of this year, Musk has used social media to convey the company’s expectations in ways that no company of Tesla’s market cap would have ever done a decade or two ago (Musk, 2018). However, part of Tesla’s appeal is its innovative approach to both productions and public relations. By embracing social media as a platform, Musk is rivaled by no less a personage than the President of the United States who also uses social media as a public relations tool. Not every investor is happy about the way Tesla allows Musk to promote goals via Twitter, though, and some Twitter users have even asked whether the SEC will investigate Tesla if it does not meet the stated goal made by Musk via social media. Misleading investors can, after all, have big repercussions—especially when a publicly traded company like Tesla has…
