Phoebe Wall Howard
Detroit Free Press
Published 7:32 AM EST Feb 8, 2020
All of a sudden, Jim Farley is talking about his grandfather — a man who began at Ford Motor Company carrying a metal lunch bucket into the factory at the turn of the 20th Century.
It is that family history that motivates Farley and carries him forward.
"It's go time," he said, hours after being promoted to Ford's chief operating officer, a role that creates a smooth succession plan to replace CEO Jim Hackett, the retired Steelcase executive who took the helm at Ford in May 2017.
Farley downplayed the surprise executive shakeup that unfolded Friday and declined to say whether he had been made any promises for the future.
"Right now, my focus is on the work itself and our team," Farley said during an interview with the Detroit Free Press shortly after making public news of his enhanced role. "We have so much to do at Ford that I — I think that's almost immaterial for me personally."
Farley, 57, joined Ford in 2007 as global head of marketing and sales and went on to lead Lincoln, Ford South America and Ford of Europe.
In April 2019, Ford named Joe Hinrichs to guide automotive manufacturing and operations globally, and Farley to lead automotive 2.0 and the future that includes driverless vehicles and big data.
Farley led Ford’s New Businesses, Technology & Strategy team, helping the company determine how to capitalize on forces reshaping the industry — Ford highlighted software platforms, connectivity, AI, automation and new forms of propulsion.
Now Farley will be responsible for all global markets and automotive operations, Ford Smart Mobility and autonomous vehicles
His priorities are clear. Financial performance? Check. Product launch plans for the F-150 and Bronco and Mustang Mach E? Check.
"What my focus is, is to bend the curve on our financial performance and get all these great new products out on the road and take advantage of the new capability that's in them, like connectivity," Farley said.
"We have this onslaught of product the second half of the year. We’re laser focused on bending that financial curve as a team. We’re going to have a very detailed plan to over deliver this year."
In flux
Smart money inside the Glass House is on Farley. After all, it's the exact route Mark Fields took to the top at Ford.
While praising Farley and telling the world of his rise, Hackett told reporters Friday he himself had no plans to re-enter retirement anytime soon. Still, he said, he has no control over the actions of Ford's board of directors. It was a nuance the financial press seized upon.
Regardless, the Ford stock price showed little if any movement.
Farley said he is undeterred. He said during the Free Press interview that increasing the value of the company and focusing on new product launches without manufacturing problems are the top priorities.
On Monday and Tuesday, his global team will come together.
"Meeting with my team is not important," Farley said. "What’s important is the outcomes. First, we’re going to get very specific on the financial delivery and the opportunity this year, as well as making sure we’re doing everything we can to mitigate the risk with these fantastic new launches."
He mentioned Tesla as a competitor and noted the importance of identifying and monetizing technology opportunities known as "smart features" related to customer behavior and using tech to better serve customers.
"There's a huge amount of value creation of taking connectivity with the customer's permission" and "catching quality problems" and improving performance that benefits both customers and the company, he said, noting that tech and use of artificial intelligence will play essential roles in Ford's success.
No shortcuts
But what happened with the 2020 Ford Explorer launch last year that resulted in thousands of vehicles being shipped from Chicago to Flat Rock for costly repairs and delayed deliveries? Did job cuts as part of the company's "smart redesign" — cutting layers of people between the CEO and the line worker as directed by the Boston Consulting Group — strip away safeguards?
"No," Farley said. "No."
"The intention of that was to go faster but not to shortcut anything. No," he said. "I can't answer your question right now because I haven't gone through the details and heard from the team yet on what we can do to reduce the risk of these launches. I just, I need to spend time with my team."
More: Surprise executive shakeup at Ford: Jim Farley moves up to COO, Joe Hinrichs retires
More: Mysterious problems disrupt delivery of 2020 Ford Explorer, Lincoln Aviator
More: UAW-Ford workers face deadline for $60,000 buyout
This whole transition to a tighter operation with more accountability and oversight is a natural byproduct of already strong relationships between the CEO and COO, Farley said.
Minute by minute
"Jim (Hackett) and I have been working really closely for three years," Farley said. "Both of us are very curious people. You can expect us to work very, very closely with each other."
That means calls, memos, meetings, whatever it takes. Details are internal, Farley said. But execution will be measurable, he promised.
"We’re going to work in any way required to go faster," Farley said. "Jim and I are very close and we’re used to for many years now working minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day."
More: A man who can build a car by hand leads Ford into future; 'He’s just never afraid'
One stays, another goes
On March 1, Ford will see the ascension of Farley and the departure of Hinrichs, two lieutenants that, until this month, were viewed as candidates for the company's top job.
Ford announced on Friday that Hinrichs was retiring but then, during a call with reporters, Hackett mentioned that the "beloved" Hinrichs is "going to have a wonderful career." The odd phrasing suggested to some that the executive was not actually retiring, just leaving the company earlier than expected at age 53.
While Hinrichs has brought extensive manufacturing expertise to the company, Ford executives downplayed the impact of his departure and emphasized that strength within the company is broader than outsiders may realize.
"First of all, the bench that Ford built and Joe built is extremely deep. This is a company that’s perfected manufacturing over 116 years. We have global depth in manufacturing, but not just that, purchasing and product development related to launches," Farley told the Free Press. "Our capability never comes down to one person. Joe was really a master but he has a world class amazing team. So, we’re not going to skip a beat."
He emphasized, "Fast doesn’t mean we’ll take shortcuts. It’s the opposite, actually. When we have an issue that the team raises on a parts shortage, the speed in which we react to that is often something that can improve the operating performance, not get us into more risk. We’d never make that trade. That would be a terrible trade for us to make."
No Dr. Seuss
Farley is the son of a successful banker and the cousin of a famous comedian — Chris Farley — whose death haunts him to this day. It is not the only family tragedy that has shaped the auto executive. But it is perhaps his grandfather he misses most of all.
By the time Farley was 5 years old, he was being groomed by his grandfather, Emmet Tracy, an early employee of company founder Henry Ford, who went on to run an auto parts business and a car dealership in Grosse Pointe.
While other grandparents read Dr. Seuss, Tracy sat down with a stack of Automotive News publications when his grandson visited during Christmas and summer breaks. The two would drive past what would become Detroit-area iconic sites: the Packard Plant, the Ford Piquette Plant and the Rouge Plant, where Tracy worked.
Farley told the Free Press in June 2019 that he could picture his grandfather arriving at the factory with his lunch pail as one of the nameless, faceless workers who built Model Ts.
After earning degrees in economics and computer science at Georgetown University and an MBA at UCLA in 1990, Farley scored job offers from Ford, General Motors and Toyota. At Ford, he would have concentrated on just one aspect of the F-Series truck. Toyota offered him the chance to focus on the whole car, specifically the launch of a new luxury brand no one had heard of — Lexus. And he took it.
Years later, after a successful career with Toyota, he would get recruited to Ford in 2007 by then-CEO Alan Mulally. Farley's mother liked that he would return home.
He spent three years in Europe implementing a turnaround plan for Ford, oversaw the multibillion-dollar operation, and stopped the bleeding. From 2015-17 as president of Ford Europe, Farley executed a plan that improved profitability and sales.
Now, Farley said, it's time to execute a plan stateside. When asked if improving earnings was a high priority, he said, "Yes. You could put an exclamation point on that."
Contact Phoebe Wall Howard at 313-222-6512 or phoward@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @phoebesaid. Read more on Ford and sign up for our autos newsletter.
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2020-02-08 12:00:00Z
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