Why didn't JF use this global event to give DF a proper send off this morning?
I and all of Model e and Skunkworks are disappointed DF wasn't properly recognized. In fact, the only mention of DF was in the chat. Missed opportunity indeed.
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@b3 I worked there for GM Truck & Bus in 1984. Fresh out of college
LOL @an+1kqfgs9w8 Kumar is too busy lobbying for the CEO spot. After all he is an engineer just like Mulally was and Ford needs an engineer at the helm. Of course Alan actually did a lot of engineering work, while Kumar is an engineer in name only.
@h4 Can't sleep Mary?
The automotive shift toward electric vehicles (EVs) fits the Renaissance model much better than a Gilded Age, accompanied by a breakdown of how that creative metaphor applies to Ford.
⚡ Renaissance vs. Gilded Age
While the "Gilded Age" implies a thin, shiny layer of gold covering up cheap or corrupt materials beneath, the EV movement represents a deep, fundamental shift in engineering, software, and human mobility.
The Rebirth: Just like the historical Renaissance revived classical Greek and Roman ideas, the modern EV era is a rebirth of the first "Golden Age" of electric cars from the early 1900s.
The Creative Spark: This period is defined by intense, groundbreaking experimentation with vehicle architectures, battery chemistry, and digital interfaces.
🎨 The Michelangelo Metaphor
If we accept that we are living through an automotive Renaissance, viewing Ford Chief Operating Officer Kumar Galhotra as Michelangelo is a fascinating parallel with both striking alignments and distinct contrasts.
The Case For "Kumarangelo"
The Master of All Trades: Michelangelo was a master of painting, sculpture, and architecture. Galhotra similarly bridges massive divides. Ford recently merged its EV, digital design, and global industrial systems into one massive "Product Creation and Industrialization" organization led directly by Galhotra. He must be the engineer, the strategist, and the manufacturer all at once.
The Engineering Mindset: Michelangelo possessed an incredible understanding of human anatomy to make his art realistic. Galhotra is applying a similar "first-principles" deep dive into vehicle anatomy, famously changing Ford's engine and part testing to a "run it until it fails" philosophy to find and fix the exact breaking points of his machines.
The Case Against
The Medium: Michelangelo was an individual artist imposing his singular, passionate, and highly personal will onto marble and plaster. Galhotra is a corporate orchestrator guiding a workforce of thousands.
The Credit: While Michelangelo gets sole credit for the Sistine Chapel, modern vehicles are the result of massive team efforts. Tech leaders like Doug Field and advanced engineers like Alan Clarke (heading the skunkworks "Universal EV" platform) are just as responsible for carving out Ford's electric future.
🏛️ Is the F-150 Lightning the Sistine Chapel?
The Ford F-150 Lightning is a monumental achievement, but in the context of art history, it might be the wrong masterpiece.
The Lightning as "The David": Michelangelo's David was revolutionary because it took a traditional, well-known subject and rendered it with brand-new, jaw-dropping scale and power. The Lightning did exactly that. It took the most traditional, best-selling American vehicle (the F-150) and electrified it, proving that an EV didn't have to look like a futuristic pod to be highly functional.
The Real Sistine Chapel: If the Sistine Chapel represents the absolute pinnacle of complex, multi-layered design that changes an industry forever, that title might actually belong to Ford's upcoming Universal EV (UEV) platform. This "blank canvas" architecture uses massive casting parts and advanced digital zoning to serve as the foundation for an entire generation of future Ford trucks and SUVs
@ex wow, they gave him that much?
@ex They must think a lot more highly of me than I think of them in that case.
DF got 60% of his AICP last year per the proxy filing. This will tell you all you need to know about what the think of him. Forget the flowery fake tribute. What they pay you is what they think of you.
@bs it’s clear you don’t know Bill. I smoked pot with him in high school, and I know the real Bill. You have a few of your details wrong, man.
Don't know what you are smokin, but is gotta be some good $hit.
It’s because DF was forced out and didn’t leave on good terms. DF over promised and under delivered by $30B! Of course he would mess up everything at Ford, he was a Tesla reject. BF is out of touch with technology and is NOT a visionary and was d-mb enough to listen to DF’s talk and BF doesn’t have the skills to discern what is garbage and what is not. BF lives in his Grosse Pointe house, wearing blue suits, and playing golf. Has BF ever flown a drown? Wrote a line of code? Install a Ring camera? Design and print something on a 3D printer? The answer is no no no! I can go on and on. He’s out of touch with technology and is not creative or a visionary. That’s the underlying issue with Ford.
I heard Doug’s going to have a big announcement in the near future, I think at least some of you will have mixed feelings about his departure eventually.
@an you must mean like the Phoenix Center in Pontiac. I mean, former, since its recent demolition.
DF caused Ford to lose $30B. That is his legacy.
Doug Field caused Ford to lose $30B. That’s his legacy.
one people are gone from fomoco they get memory-holed. where did they go? did they even work here? :) probably not a pic of lee iacocca in the new exec office wing.
@an I too noticed this and sent him a $100 reward certificate.
Kumar will give the proper recognition. He will likely recognize him as the person who brought Ford up from the ashes , now rising like the phoenix
The omission is pretty telling.
@OP Maybe you can explain why DF needs recognition? First off many of us feel the man is a con. He never stays at any one employer for more than 3-5yrs. People like you bring up GOOGLE but that never even made it to production let alone prototype.
DF MO is like a grenade pull the pin then leave town before it explodes. If he was so good as you claim then why did TESLA let him go? Maybe Elon knows more than you? Which I believe to be the story. Again his employment record speaks to that.
FNV4 Took him close to 4yrs to figure out that would not work. If he would have figured that out in 12 we could give him some slack.