Ford Names Jim Farley as New CEO, Succeeding Jim Hackett -- Update
August 04 2020 - 10:06AM
Dow Jones News
By Mike Colias
Ford Motor Co.'s Chief Operating Officer Jim Farley will take
over as chief executive, succeeding the retiring Jim Hackett, who
is more than three years into a turnaround effort that has yet to
lift profits and the auto maker's depressed share price.
The company said Tuesday Mr. Farley, 58 years old, will succeed
Mr. Hackett, 65, on Oct. 1. Mr. Hackett will remain in an advisory
role through next spring, the company said.
Ford is in the midst of a global restructuring as it tries to
navigate the coronavirus pandemic, which has wreaked havoc on auto
makers forced to shut down factories this spring. Ford said last
week it lost about $1.9 billion in the second quarter, though the
result was less severe than it originally forecast.
Mr. Farley emerged in February as the leading contender to take
over, when the former strategy chief and longtime marketing
executive was elevated into the chief operating officer role. His
promotion coincided with the sudden retirement of Ford's president
of automotive, Joe Hinrichs who essentially had been serving as a
co-No. 2 with Mr. Farley in what many viewed as a competition for
the top job.
Mr. Hackett was appointed in May 2017, praised by Ford's
Executive Chairman Bill Ford as a change agent who could guide the
company's long-range strategy in an industry buffeted by
disruption, from big bets on electric and driverless cars to
incursions by tech giants looking to take more control of the car's
cockpit.
But beyond mapping the future, Mr. Hackett has grappled with
more-pressing problems in Ford's manufacturing business today that
continue to weigh on profits.
Troubles have popped up in Ford's U.S. business, its main profit
generator. The company stumbled last year on the first redesigned
Explorer SUV in nearly a decade, one of the auto maker's most
important vehicle launches in years. Quality problems on certain
models also have led to higher warranty costs, which swelled to
around $5 billion, roughly 30% higher than past years, Mr. Farley
told analysts in February.
Write to Mike Colias at Mike.Colias@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 04, 2020 09:51 ET (13:51 GMT)
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