I had a dream last that Alan is back at Ford. I wish it was true. I still can cope up with the fact that the new Ceo appointed has a different LAST NAME and not different strategy to make things work. Huh!
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I laugh at the comment about AM good in his day. At least AM had a real vison and plan. JH & BF do not. BF was CEO before AM and we lost money when the car market grew to 17mn. His own family threatened to dump the preferred stock if he did not step down. The guy does not know what he is doing.
Allan was great in his day. This is a very different time in the automotive business.
Thinking he's good where he's at ;)
Enter Big Jim - Put the Company on SRD Blast, and blew out the talent, exit stage left. Unfortunately, with Farley on stage, he is going to Nuke the workforce in the coming year and not think twice. He will have already padded his bank account. He will exit stage left to some beach in the Caribbean. But hey, what do I know, I just took a Pulse survey and couldn’t be happier in this sh– show.
I loved Alan. He was truly a rare leader. I remember him talking about when he first joined Ford. He couldn’t understand why all of the status reports were perfect with everything on target yet the company was in such a mess. He said it took a while before people were willing to tell him when something was a mess. How could he help if no one would share their issues. I don’t think Alan was out of the parking lot before we went back to perfect status reports that hide the horrible issues.
Mark Fields was also impressive. Worked with him at Mazda when they were in a world of hurt and he put them back on track. He had a strategy that he could clearly explain and he made sure the day to day activities aligned to that strategy. He was focused and consistent. People got behind him and trusted him.
We desperately need someone with strong leadership skills now.
I loved Alan, and I respected Mark. I felt I could give my unconditional support to both leaders.
"People may say the Oval did not have a EV plan."
It still doesn't. The Mustang Mach-E is a completely half-baked checkbox that was rushed out the door. It will not compete with Tesla.
Well you see the seeds for this came from Ford 2000. Our bench has been filled with "YES" men. The men who developed vehicles like the F150/ Ranger / Explorer / Expedition are gone. Billy had the keys to the car between 01-06 and demonstrated he did not know what he was doing. Allan those types of leaders are very hard to find. Allan had a vision and a plan that every one understood. Ask yourself this? Why did Allan retire 18 months ahead of what he originally announced? When AM was running things Billy stayed back. Does anyone notice how much Billy is involved now? Mark Fields may have not been perfect. but he had time to watch and study the difference between a leader and someone who was in over their heads. MF did no go create or buy car companies or AV companies. he stayed the course. His downside was to let the organization swell back up. You watch him during his time on CNBC Business channel they try to bait him. his body language says he wants to say something but doesn't. People may say the Oval did not have a EV plan. But look at FCA Margionne came out and said they will buy that technology not create whole new organizations inside the company. The oval has been without a vision and plan since Hackett took over. and i am not the only one saying that the business channels said stated that yesterday.
Joe was unfairly scapegoated but was also responsible for the unforgivably botched Explorer launch.
Alan was great but is 75 years old.
Looking back at our greatest hits isn't the answer. The sad truth is there is no one on the bench that is qualified to take over, and that includes Farley. Bill Ford made a horrible hire in Hackett and is doubling down on the strategy by promoting Farley.
Family control of the company is the problem.
Stop living in the past. The would,ov,could,ov,and should,ov. Should have sold Ford stock? Family control in this firm prevents takeovers, but just security for the family. Most family businesses pay family members 3 to 4 times the going rate for their positions. The problem is that they should not be in the business, when it comes to other shareholders. Don might be able to take over in January,2021. We can use a Trump Resort in Dearborn,Michigan. Go Ford it.
I would be happy with Mark Fields at this point. They fired the wrong person or pushed him out Joe Hinirich would have been a better option