F Ford Motor Company

By Christina Rogers 

Ford Motor Co. is losing two executives it recently recruited from Silicon Valley, the latest in a series of prominent executives to leave the car maker since Chief Executive Jim Hackett was hired last year.

Musa Tariq, a former Apple Inc. executive hired last year to be Ford's first brand chief, is leaving the company after a little more than a year on the job. Raj Rao, another hire from Silicon Valley tapped to run the Ford's smart-mobility division, has also elected to leave the company, effective May 1, a Ford spokeswoman said.

Messrs. Tariq and Rao were among a number of auto-industry outsiders recruited from Silicon Valley by former CEO Mark Fields before his firing last May to help the Dearborn, Mich., auto maker better compete with many new tech players looking to upend the car business.

In his mid-30s, Mr. Tariq was among the youngest corporate officers at Ford and he was in charge of building and differentiating Ford's brand world-wide.

Mr. Rao came to Ford from 3M Co., where he previously ran the company's Silicon Valley digital hub. He was hired on two years ago as CEO of Ford Smart Mobility LLC, a subsidiary created to oversee the company's investment and partnerships in new ventures, such as ride hailing and bike sharing.

Write to Christina Rogers at christina.rogers@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 21, 2018 17:37 ET (21:37 GMT)

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