Post by TonyV on Dec 8, 2009 3:09:35 GMT -5
Mulally easily met Ford's list of qualifications
Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News
When Bill Ford Jr. decided in 2006 that fixing Ford Motor Co. was a bigger challenge than he could handle, he began making a list of the qualifications he wanted in his replacement.
It would have to be someone who had led a successful corporate restructuring, someone with global manufacturing experience and someone with enough technical expertise to be able to step in and learn the business quickly.
"It wasn't a long list," said a person familiar with the situation.
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At the top was Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Japan's Nissan Motor Co. and France's Renault SA, who then enjoyed near rock star status in the global auto industry.
Ghosn said no.
Though he lacked automobile experience, Mulally met all of Bill Ford's criteria.
The president of Boeing's commercial aviation division, he had made a name for himself by saving the jet manufacturer from financial collapse after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks prompted every customer to cancel orders. He was an engineer who had become a student of Toyota Motor Corp.'s production system and applied it to aircraft manufacturing. As an executive, Mulally also already had dealt with the United Auto Workers.
Mulally had something else Bill Ford liked: a reputation for getting people to work together as a team. As head of the Boeing 777 program, he had famously let a documentary crew film the entire development process. Why? Because he knew that the presence of cameras would keep everyone on their best behavior.
But Mulally balked at Ford's initial overtures.
Though he had been passed up for promotion to the top job at Boeing, Mulally was relishing Boeing's victories over its arch-rival, Europe's Airbus SAS. Moreover, leaving Boeing would mean walking away from millions in stock options and other deferred compensation.
Ford's human resources director, Joe Laymon, camped out in Seattle until Mulally agreed to fly to Michigan to hear what Bill Ford had to say.
In the end, it was the prospect of saving not one, but two iconic American companies that lured Mulally to Dearborn.
That and $28 million.
bhoffman@detnews.com (313) 222-2443
Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News
When Bill Ford Jr. decided in 2006 that fixing Ford Motor Co. was a bigger challenge than he could handle, he began making a list of the qualifications he wanted in his replacement.
It would have to be someone who had led a successful corporate restructuring, someone with global manufacturing experience and someone with enough technical expertise to be able to step in and learn the business quickly.
"It wasn't a long list," said a person familiar with the situation.
Advertisement
At the top was Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Japan's Nissan Motor Co. and France's Renault SA, who then enjoyed near rock star status in the global auto industry.
Ghosn said no.
Though he lacked automobile experience, Mulally met all of Bill Ford's criteria.
The president of Boeing's commercial aviation division, he had made a name for himself by saving the jet manufacturer from financial collapse after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks prompted every customer to cancel orders. He was an engineer who had become a student of Toyota Motor Corp.'s production system and applied it to aircraft manufacturing. As an executive, Mulally also already had dealt with the United Auto Workers.
Mulally had something else Bill Ford liked: a reputation for getting people to work together as a team. As head of the Boeing 777 program, he had famously let a documentary crew film the entire development process. Why? Because he knew that the presence of cameras would keep everyone on their best behavior.
But Mulally balked at Ford's initial overtures.
Though he had been passed up for promotion to the top job at Boeing, Mulally was relishing Boeing's victories over its arch-rival, Europe's Airbus SAS. Moreover, leaving Boeing would mean walking away from millions in stock options and other deferred compensation.
Ford's human resources director, Joe Laymon, camped out in Seattle until Mulally agreed to fly to Michigan to hear what Bill Ford had to say.
In the end, it was the prospect of saving not one, but two iconic American companies that lured Mulally to Dearborn.
That and $28 million.
bhoffman@detnews.com (313) 222-2443
