NEW CEO MULALLY'S CHALLENGES

[Old999]

Hot Dog! Journalists and "Analysts" are having a field day speculating over the hiring of Alan Mulally as Ford CEO. He admits to not being a "Car Guy", and thus, should fit right in at Ford where "car guys" are as scarce as hen's teeth. While some reporters race to local bars to get insight from the union worker experts, others take a more balanced approach.

 

Mulally's challenges are simultaneously simple but very difficult :

1) Get rid of the executive bloat. Eliminate the large number of fiefdoms and streamline the remainder. Ford's senior executives have survived by protecting themselves and destroying any perceived threat to their existence. Their continuing failures to implement obviously needed changes have capitalized on Bill Ford's naiveté and incompetence.

2) Find someone who knows what exciting styling is.

3) Change Ford's Corporate structure, especially its arrogance and one way communication .. the lower echelons of the company are worth listening to.

4) Re-establish the bean-counters as a support group and not a controlling one .. they have cut more muscle than fat from the company .. have a history of setting impossible budgets in key areas resulting in hasty engineering approvals, poor quality, recalls , etc.

5) Revamp Ford's disastrous structure responsible for product quality.

6) Fire Joe Laymon and revamp Ford's Human Resources activity. Restore some level of respect and trust in the company from whatever employees will be left after the various bloodbaths. Get rid of quotas, ethnic/generic preferences and find and develop the best people possible for every job.

7) MOST IMPORTANT: Recognize that Bill Ford and his clique of insiders, the Board of Directors and the Ford Family can be your worst enemies. They have proven themselves to be a counter productive and destructive force.

 

Amazingly, Bill Ford still seems to escape the blame for the disaster he has brought to his great-grandfather's once great company. Supported by the Ford Family and their inherited wealth, almost single-handedly, Bill Ford proves to be the root problem. He sat quietly on the Board while Nasser started and accelerated the destruction. When finally stepping in as CEO, he displayed an astounding lack of leadership and knowledge of the business. During a few short years of profit, provided by some mere built up momentum, it was business as usual at the Glass House.. and then the hopeful prognostications, the various restructurings, and continuing failures to implement the much needed changes. Bill ends up claiming his plate was too full while the record says that the smallest hors d'oeuvre would have given him indigestion.

 

If Mulally has a prayer at success, it will be with the understanding that Bill Ford and the Family will give him a free hand .. and back him up .. rather than undermine him by their meddling in a business they do not understand.

[NLPRacing]

All I want to know is since this guy was announced yesterday, why don't we already have the Australian Falcon Euro C1 here yet! :shrug:

 

Just kidding. But seriously, I agree with some of the above points, but the real answer is simple, Ford needs to design & build dependable vehicles that people actually want to buy. They have the Expedition, Edge, Focus & SuperDuty w/HLA coming rolling out now and in the next few months and the updated Escape, FiveHundred & Freestyle (hopefully) soon there after. And if the next F150 gets a diesel, HLA and/or hybrid versions, people will start buying full size trucks again. They are on the right track and I think Fields has them going in the right direction. I just hope this new guy is able to use Ford's global companies to make the NA operations work better and doesn't ruin any of the "good" stuff coming up.

[TheLemon]

Hot Dog! Journalists and "Analysts" are having a field day speculating over the hiring of Alan Mulally as Ford CEO. He admits to not being a "Car Guy", and thus, should fit right in at Ford where "car guys" are as scarce as hen's teeth. While some reporters race to local bars to get insight from the union worker experts, others take a more balanced approach.

 

Mulally's challenges are simultaneously simple but very difficult :

1) Get rid of the executive bloat. Eliminate the large number of fiefdoms and streamline the remainder. Ford's senior executives have survived by protecting themselves and destroying any perceived threat to their existence. Their continuing failures to implement obviously needed changes have capitalized on Bill Ford's naiveté and incompetence.

2) Find someone who knows what exciting styling is.

3) Change Ford's Corporate structure, especially its arrogance and one way communication .. the lower echelons of the company are worth listening to.

4) Re-establish the bean-counters as a support group and not a controlling one .. they have cut more muscle than fat from the company .. have a history of setting impossible budgets in key areas resulting in hasty engineering approvals, poor quality, recalls , etc.

5) Revamp Ford's disastrous structure responsible for product quality.

6) Fire Joe Laymon and revamp Ford's Human Resources activity. Restore some level of respect and trust in the company from whatever employees will be left after the various bloodbaths. Get rid of quotas, ethnic/generic preferences and find and develop the best people possible for every job.

7) MOST IMPORTANT: Recognize that Bill Ford and his clique of insiders, the Board of Directors and the Ford Family can be your worst enemies. They have proven themselves to be a counter productive and destructive force.

 

Amazingly, Bill Ford still seems to escape the blame for the disaster he has brought to his great-grandfather's once great company. Supported by the Ford Family and their inherited wealth, almost single-handedly, Bill Ford proves to be the root problem. He sat quietly on the Board while Nasser started and accelerated the destruction. When finally stepping in as CEO, he displayed an astounding lack of leadership and knowledge of the business. During a few short years of profit, provided by some mere built up momentum, it was business as usual at the Glass House.. and then the hopeful prognostications, the various restructurings, and continuing failures to implement the much needed changes. Bill ends up claiming his plate was too full while the record says that the smallest hors d'oeuvre would have given him indigestion.

 

If Mulally has a prayer at success, it will be with the understanding that Bill Ford and the Family will give him a free hand .. and back him up .. rather than undermine him by their meddling in a business they do not understand.

 

 

You forgot number 8....

 

8) Visit FordLemon.com

[Bluecon]

And number 9. Sell the Lexus.

 

"The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world.""

 

 

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../609060459/1014

Edited September 6, 2006 by Bluecon

[Biker16]

And number 9. Sell the Lexus.

 

"The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world.""

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../609060459/1014

don't sell it until Ford has something better for him to buy!!!!

 

let the engineers see him drive it and workers see him drive and chalenge them to make something better.

 

About Fuking time we had an engineer run this F'n company.

Edited September 6, 2006 by Biker16

[TheLemon]

And number 9. Sell the Lexus.

 

"The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world.""

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../609060459/1014

 

Tell him to send us the Lexus!

We'll trade our Ford Taurus 1998 with only 12000 miles on it! The thing is like brand new and comes with a sign on top! (free) :happy feet:

[mikem12]

And number 9. Sell the Lexus.

 

"The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world.""

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../609060459/1014

The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world."

 

That fact alone tells us a lot about Alan Mulally, the 37-year Boeing Co. veteran who was introduced Tuesday in Dearborn as Ford's new president and CEO.

 

And it tells us plenty about the mind-set of Executive Chairman Bill Ford and the board of directors of Ford Motor, the iconic automaker struggling to survive in the early years of its second century.

 

Mulally, who led Boeing's recent comeback to overtake European rival Airbus in new commercial airplane orders, is a realist. He knows at Ford, he's not joining a company at the top of its game.

 

He's also candid. He knows Lexus cars are better than anything currently in Ford's lineup, and he doesn't care if Ford employees or the media hear him say it out loud.

 

And he's got some moxie, enough to think he can help put Ford Motor back on top of the heap in a brutally competitive global market.

 

Mulally's appointment also is proof that Bill Ford and the company's board finally, and fully, grasp the grim reality of Ford Motor's predicament in today's stormy auto market.

 

Ford Motor was a ship lurching in treacherous waters with the wrong product mix for current conditions, a management crew light on big-time executive experience and an earnest but overmatched captain -- Bill Ford, acting as chairman, CEO, advertising pitchman and chief bottle-washer.

 

"I had too much to do. I was wearing too many hats," Ford said Tuesday.

 

Ford Motor's sales had dropped from more than 4 million vehicles in 2000 to less than 3 million in 2005.

 

And then this year, the decline became a free fall, as skyrocketing gasoline prices sent sales of the bread-and-butter Explorer SUV and F-150 pickups skidding.

 

Despite all that, Mulally, at age 61, saw in Ford a challenge he couldn't resist.

 

Sort of a patriotic call to duty.

 

"The reason I have a Lexus," Mulally told me in an interview after Tuesday's news conference, "is that it's the finest car in the world. I studied all the cars.

 

"And this is also the reason why I'm here (at Ford), because Boeing makes the finest commercial airplanes in the world, and what was compelling to me was that Bill Ford, when he called me, Bill wanted to focus on making the best auto company in the world ...

 

"The reason he called was not to restructure, not to get rid of stuff, not to sell it off. He called because he wanted to make the finest automobiles in the world. And that's why I'm here," Mulally continued. "Because I think the U.S. can compete. I know they can compete. ... There's no reason why we can't be the best in the world."

 

Bill Ford added: "One of the things Alan talked to me about is that this is a patriotic decision. He left a great career in Boeing to take on a very difficult job in a town where he doesn't have any family, at a stage of his career where could easily be riding off into a well-deserved sunset. But he said, 'I feel it's the right thing for the country. Boeing's a great American icon. Ford's a great American icon. If I can help Ford get back to where it ought to be, I'll feel like I've done my part not just for Ford, but for the country.' "

 

Obviously, Ford isn't Boeing. And the car business isn't the airplane business.

 

Boeing slugs it out against just one chief global competitor -- Airbus -- while Ford is up against Toyota, General Motors Corp., DaimlerChrysler, Nissan, Honda, BMW, Hyundai and more.

 

Maybe Ford Motor has sunk into too deep a hole for Bill Ford and his candid new CEO to rescue it.

 

Let's hope not. Better they get cranking now than another three months or a year from now.

[TheLemon]

Here's a picture! Just think about it Mr. Mullany: This Taurus is part of history! You wanna approach the ordinary guy who buys ordinary car? This is your chance Mr. Mullany! hehehehehe!

Edited September 6, 2006 by TheLemon

[Noah Harbinger]

Here's a picture! Just think about it Mr. Mullany: This Taurus is part of history! You wanna approach the ordinary guy who buys ordinary car? This is your chance Mr. Mullany! hehehehehe!

 

I thought you were locked in a cage somewhere?

[igor]

I thought you were locked in a cage somewhere?

he isn't but should be ..

 

Igor

[Sizzler]

And number 9. Sell the Lexus.

 

"The newly named chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. drives a Lexus LS 430, the flagship luxury sedan from Toyota Motor Corp. that he unabashedly says he purchased because "it's the finest car in the world.""

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.../609060459/1014

 

Well that's a telling remark. He obviously is NOT a car guy.

 

Bill Ford lucked into a few years profits in a roll, I think the Boeing guy did too. Anyone have any real details on what exactly he did at Boeing except be there when the improvements already in the pipeline started paying off? Near as I can tell, Airbus shooting itself in the foot did more for Boeing than any one guy.

Think Toyota will bring out the hari kari equipment?

[Gnostic]

Well that's a telling remark. He obviously is NOT a car guy.

 

Bill Ford lucked into a few years profits in a roll, I think the Boeing guy did too. Anyone have any real details on what exactly he did at Boeing except be there when the improvements already in the pipeline started paying off? Near as I can tell, Airbus shooting itself in the foot did more for Boeing than any one guy.

Think Toyota will bring out the hari kari equipment?

 

 

Throughout his career, Mulally has been recognized for his contributions and industry leadership, including:

 

* Named one of "The Best Leaders of 2005" by BusinessWeek magazine for streamlining Boeing's production system and transforming the company's commercial airplanes product line.

* Honored in 2002 for distinguished service by the University of Kansas.

* Named an honorary fellow of England's Royal Aeronautical Society in 1999.

* Selected in 1996 as a Laureate, Aviation Week & Space Technology's top honor, for the Boeing 777's introduction into commercial service. In addition, Mulally received three Laurels recognition from the magazine: in 2000 for leading the Commercial Airplanes team in a turnaround that increased financial performance, productivity and shareholder satisfaction; in 1995 for leading development of the 777; and in 1986 for his work on wind shear and effective pilot training.

* Recipient of the AIAA Reed Aeronautics award for a "lifetime of achievement in commercial aviation" in 1996.

* Named 1996 Engineer of the Year by Design News magazine.

* Accepted the National Aeronautic Association Robert J. Collier Trophy on behalf of the 777 team for the "greatest achievement in aeronautics and astronautics for 1995."

* Elected as an AIAA fellow in 1995.

* Recipient of the University of Kansas Engineering School's Distinguished Engineering Service award in 1994.

* Honored with the 1986 AIAA Technical Management Award.

* Named by the Puget Sound Business Journal in 1985 as one of the top 25 business leaders for the 1990s.

* Selected for the Seattle Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Tomorrow program in 1984.

* Chosen 1978 Industry Engineer of the Year by the National Society of Professional Engineers.

* Named as Boeing's 1978 Engineering Employee of the Year.

[markfnc]

Hello sir, your company car is located in lot 1 space #12.

[Sizzler]

so, taking out the fluff...

Throughout his career, Mulally has been recognized for his contributions and industry leadership, including:

 

* Named one of "The Best Leaders of 2005" by BusinessWeek magazine for streamlining Boeing's production system and transforming the company's commercial airplanes product line.

* Selected in 1996 as a Laureate, Aviation Week & Space Technology's top honor, for the Boeing 777's introduction into commercial service. In addition, Mulally received three Laurels recognition from the magazine: in 2000 for leading the Commercial Airplanes team in a turnaround that increased financial performance, productivity and shareholder satisfaction; in 1995 for leading development of the 777

* Accepted the National Aeronautic Association Robert J. Collier Trophy on behalf of the 777 team for the "greatest achievement in aeronautics and astronautics for 1995."

 

I point out the "...on behalf of the 777 team" in the last trophy.

 

Again, I've got to ask for details behind these 'accomplishments'. Streamlining production was all HIS work, his design and plan? There was no one else involved?

 

I've got to wonder why he didn't get the Boeing CEO position if he was so good. And why Boeing's stock is actually rising a little with his announced departure.

 

He sounds like a one-product guy who rode the 777 from start to finish, and when it was done, he didn't get the carrot, he got the 'wish you well'.

 

Good luck to him, I wish him well.

 

Ditch the crappy car though...

[bolita]

Throughout his career, Mulally has been recognized for his contributions and industry leadership, including:

 

* Named one of "The Best Leaders of 2005" by BusinessWeek magazine for streamlining Boeing's production system and transforming the company's commercial airplanes product line.

* Honored in 2002 for distinguished service by the University of Kansas.

* Named an honorary fellow of England's Royal Aeronautical Society in 1999.

* Selected in 1996 as a Laureate, Aviation Week & Space Technology's top honor, for the Boeing 777's introduction into commercial service. In addition, Mulally received three Laurels recognition from the magazine: in 2000 for leading the Commercial Airplanes team in a turnaround that increased financial performance, productivity and shareholder satisfaction; in 1995 for leading development of the 777; and in 1986 for his work on wind shear and effective pilot training.

* Recipient of the AIAA Reed Aeronautics award for a "lifetime of achievement in commercial aviation" in 1996.

* Named 1996 Engineer of the Year by Design News magazine.

* Accepted the National Aeronautic Association Robert J. Collier Trophy on behalf of the 777 team for the "greatest achievement in aeronautics and astronautics for 1995."

* Elected as an AIAA fellow in 1995.

* Recipient of the University of Kansas Engineering School's Distinguished Engineering Service award in 1994.

* Honored with the 1986 AIAA Technical Management Award.

* Named by the Puget Sound Business Journal in 1985 as one of the top 25 business leaders for the 1990s.

* Selected for the Seattle Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Tomorrow program in 1984.

* Chosen 1978 Industry Engineer of the Year by the National Society of Professional Engineers.

* Named as Boeing's 1978 Engineering Employee of the Year.

 

I think this is exactly the profile of CEO Ford needed - not a car guy but a leader To bring back trust and motivation to Ford employees you dont need a car guy IMHO.

 

About his Lexus, would he drive himself to work everyday? I'd bet they'll pick him up in a TownCar

[igor]

so, taking out the fluff...

I point out the "...on behalf of the 777 team" in the last trophy.

 

Again, I've got to ask for details behind these 'accomplishments'. Streamlining production was all HIS work, his design and plan? There was no one else involved?

 

I've got to wonder why he didn't get the Boeing CEO position if he was so good. And why Boeing's stock is actually rising a little with his announced departure.

 

He sounds like a one-product guy who rode the 777 from start to finish, and when it was done, he didn't get the carrot, he got the 'wish you well'.

 

Good luck to him, I wish him well.

 

Ditch the crappy car though...

 

Boeing apparently has a clause that satet that the overall CEO has to be at least 65 years old. Mulally is 61 .. but he still hoped, sinc he was the best candidat efrom inside the company - and proven. Boeing instead hired an outsider - from 3M

 

Igor

[Sizzler]

Boeing apparently has a clause that says that the overall CEO has to be at least 65 years old. Mulally is 61 .. but he still hoped, since he was the best candidate from inside the company - and proven. Boeing instead hired an outsider - from 3M

 

Igor

 

The next CEO?

 

Stonecipher is 67 and had retired as Boeing's vice chairman and COO last year. The self-described "hillbilly from Tennessee" is considered an interim CEO, at best. Moreover, with Sears gone, there are few highly regarded internal candidates at a company that has had just nine CEOs in its 87 years.

 

Condit had been expected to remain until he turned 65. Terms of Condit's exit package were not released, but based on the company's executive pension plan, he will be eligible for an annual pension of about $1.7 million.

 

The avuncular Platt, 62, is considered a long shot to succeed Stonecipher. As CEO of Hewlett-Packard, Platt oversaw a $50 billion, 125,000-employee company that was admired in Silicon Valley. But he lacked the color of fellow high-tech CEOs Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison. Platt retired from H-P in 1999 to make way for Carly Fiorina.

 

"His even-keel leadership is ideal for navigating a company during its ups and downs," says Bill Murphy, a former H-P exec who worked under Platt for 10 years. "He can handle a company under duress."

 

Stonecipher, who landed his first job at General Electric after getting a physics degree from Tennessee Technological University, might favor someone with GE connections as a permanent successor.

 

Some headhunters believe that might spell job opportunity for Boeing board member James McNerney, who ran GE's jet engine division from 1997-2000 before being named CEO of 3M in January 2001. McNerney is just 54. But his outsider status and managerial expertise at GE and 3M, could eventually make him a leading candidate to run Boeing, says Stephen Mader, CEO of executive recruiter Christian & Timbers.

 

Apparently 54 year olds are acceptable candidates. And Mulally was no where to be seen in this last short list for Boeing CEO.

[igor]

Apparently 54 year olds are acceptable candidates. And Mulally was no where to be seen in this last short list for Boeing CEO.

 

hmm ... did not know that ... one learns something new every day - I went on the news reports - and one of them mentioned the clause .. i guess thye were off.

 

Thanks

 

Igor

[LincolnFan]

"The reason he called was not to restructure, not to get rid of stuff, not to sell it off. He called because he wanted to make the finest automobiles in the world. And that's why I'm here,"

 

Then revive Lincoln.

 

oh and Lemon, are you going to stalk Mulally now?

Edited September 6, 2006 by LincolnFan

[TheLemon]

"The reason he called was not to restructure, not to get rid of stuff, not to sell it off. He called because he wanted to make the finest automobiles in the world. And that's why I'm here,"

 

Then revive Lincoln.

 

oh and Lemon, are you going to stalk Mulally now?

 

Do I have your permission to do so?

[wildosvt]

About Fuking time we had an engineer run this F'n company.

 

 

OMFG!

 

The Titanic was engineered to be unsinkable.

[RichardJensen]

Again, I've got to ask for details behind these 'accomplishments'.

1) Mulally worked in increasingly responsible roles on the 727, 737, 747, 757, and 767 projects and led development of the 777.

 

2) So he owns a Lexus, so he says it's the finest car in the world. That does not disqualify him from running Ford. Lou Gerstner probably could not tell you how System 360 turned into AS/400, he was far from the expert on computer technology that people believed were required to turn around IBM. The only perspective he brought to IBM was a customer's perspective. This industry is full, from stem to stern, with 'car guys' many of them stroking egos the size of Town Cars, many of them convinced that their 'gut instincts' are infallible, and a whole chunk of them willing to play politics and lie in order to get their way. The last thing that Ford needed was an industry insider. There are enough people at Ford that know what's going on, so that he just has to know how to filter out the BS. Given that he's climbed his way up to the top, I'm guessing his BS detector is a heck of a lot better than Bill Ford's. And BS detection is pretty much a universally applicable skill.

Edited September 6, 2006 by RichardJensen

[LincolnFan]

If he makes the MKS a POS, yes hell i'll come down to US and stalk him too.

[grbeck]

1) Mulally worked in increasingly responsible roles on the 727, 737, 747, 757, and 767 projects and led development of the 777.

 

2) So he owns a Lexus, so he says it's the finest car in the world. That does not disqualify him from running Ford. Lou Gerstner probably could not tell you how System 360 turned into AS/400, he was far from the expert on computer technology that people believed were required to turn around IBM. The only perspective he brought to IBM was a customer's perspective. This industry is full, from stem to stern, with 'car guys' many of them stroking egos the size of Town Cars, many of them convinced that their 'gut instincts' are infallible, and a whole chunk of them willing to play politics and lie in order to get their way. The last thing that Ford needed was an industry insider. There are enough people at Ford that know what's going on, so that he just has to know how to filter out the BS. Given that he's climbed his way up to the top, I'm guessing his BS detector is a heck of a lot better than Bill Ford's. And BS detection is pretty much a universally applicable skill.

 

I would agree that Ford doesn't need another Bob Lutz, who is wildly overrated, in my opinion. Mr. Mulally does, however, need to recognize and nurture those employees who DO have a passion for automobiles.

 

And he needs to end this "flavor of the month" approach to product planning. If the Five Hundred isn't selling as well as it could be then fix it by keeping what is good and correcting what is bad...don't throw it away in favor of the next "big thing."

 

That is one approach to the market that Ford DOES need to copy from Toyota and Honda.

[kenp77]

1) Mulally worked in increasingly responsible roles on the 727, 737, 747, 757, and 767 projects and led development of the 777.

 

2) So he owns a Lexus, so he says it's the finest car in the world. That does not disqualify him from running Ford. Lou Gerstner probably could not tell you how System 360 turned into AS/400, he was far from the expert on computer technology that people believed were required to turn around IBM. The only perspective he brought to IBM was a customer's perspective. This industry is full, from stem to stern, with 'car guys' many of them stroking egos the size of Town Cars, many of them convinced that their 'gut instincts' are infallible, and a whole chunk of them willing to play politics and lie in order to get their way. The last thing that Ford needed was an industry insider. There are enough people at Ford that know what's going on, so that he just has to know how to filter out the BS. Given that he's climbed his way up to the top, I'm guessing his BS detector is a heck of a lot better than Bill Ford's. And BS detection is pretty much a universally applicable skill.

Well said Rich and I suspect his BS detector in delaing with the UAW will be razor sharp as he has the upper hand and he knows it and I doubt they had gen. at boeing????