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Old 12-02-2020, 09:39 AM   #1
Wretched
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Default Ford shakes up management after bruising year

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The head of Ford’s automotive division, a one-time chief executive hopeful, is to depart the company as part of an overhaul of its senior ranks, a shake-up that follows this week’s announcement that the carmaker had lost $1.7bn in the fourth quarter.

Joe Hinrichs, who is 54, will retire on March 1, the company said on Friday, while business and technology chief Jim Farley was named chief operating officer.

The US carmaker also expanded the role of Hau Thai-Tang, chief product development and purchasing officer. He will have oversight of enterprise product line management and connectivity added to his responsibilities.

The shake-up will rekindle debate over who is in pole position to replace Ford chief executive Jim Hackett, who turns 65 this year and has led the company since 2017, with both Mr Farley and Mr Thai-Tang regarded as possible successors.

Mr Farley said he wanted to bring a “greater sense of urgency” to the business, and ensure Ford avoids mistakes in the rollout of new vehicles this year. The business has been dogged by the delayed rollout of its Explorer sport utility vehicle.

He also said he would focus more on Ford’s commercial vehicle operations, which have been split off into a separate reporting stream in Europe, and move more quickly to upgrade vehicles with internet connectivity.

The commercial vehicle group is the largest in Europe with its Transit van line, and Farley wants to emulate that success in the US, where its F-series pickup trucks sell close to 1m a year.

“We have learnt so much in Europe it has really helped us understand commercial vehicles as a business, and we have to do it in all regions,” he told the Financial Times.

Mr Hackett had worked to stem losses in Europe and Latin America, and to reinvent the company to compete in a world of connected and increasingly electric vehicles.

The changes come after Ford reported on Tuesday a $1.7bn loss in the three months to the end of December on revenues of $39.7bn, down 5 per cent compared with the same period in 2018. This sparked a 10 per cent fall in the share price.

Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Auto Trader, said the shake-up came as no surprise.

“Ford reported dismal earnings on Tuesday, and being under tremendous pressure by Wall Street to show results of its $11bn restructuring, Ford has to show it was making some moves,” she said.

Mr Hackett denied the reshuffle was triggered by the company’s earnings, or by the problematic rollout of the Explorer, which was Mr Hinrichs’ responsibility.


Mr Hackett’s appointment three years ago, having run Ford’s mobility unit, was unexpected given that both Mr Farley, who at the time ran Europe, and Mr Hinrichs, who ran the Americas region, were expected to get the top position.

In his new role, Mr Farley will oversee automotive operations as well as the mobility and technology divisions he already runs.

Mr Hinrichs, a 19-year veteran at Ford, had been promoted to president of automotive in April 2019 after serving as the head of global operations. He represented Ford at the White House just last week when Donald Trump signed the new trade deal between the US, Mexico and Canada.

Mr Hackett said he “was instrumental to Ford’s ability to survive the recession a decade ago without bankruptcy or taxpayer bailout, and successfully headed Ford’s operations in Asia Pacific and North America”.
https://www.ft.com/content/1d714734-...2-9ddbdc86190d
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