Bill Ford sees a positive future for the company his grandfather founded 116 years ago; no blue oval in those days
INTERVIEWS INSIDE FORD
14 AUGUST 2019 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 59
We weren’t supposed to meet Ford’s president
and CEO Jim Hackett on this two-day flying visit
to Dearborn. They told us he’d be committed
elsewhere, and knowing how top car executives’
schedules are stretched to the minute, we knew
with regret that there’d be no room for flexibility.
Except there was. While we hovered in one of
the corridors connecting the remarkably modest
offices of Ford’s recently refurbed executive
suites (do they suddenly have more executives
to accommodate?) Hackett suddenly appeared,
greeted us in his friendly way and swept us into
his smallish office crowded with desk, computer
and a large window overlooking the estate –
one of his several domains. “Come on in,” he
boomed, politely offering us a coffee we all knew
there wouldn’t be time to drink.
About the biggest thing in the whole room
was a well-used whiteboard, set out with multi-
coloured markers. Hackett is someone who can cite
n u m e r o u s exa m p l e s ove r a ve r y s u cce s sf u l b u s i n e s s
life of products and processes being imaginatively
and productively adapted to their users. His
collection of books – ‘Factfulness’, ‘Dare to Lead’
and ‘Bored and Brilliant’ were three – made his
priorities quite clear: not a model car in sight.
We outlined briefly our mission to investigate the
true health and prospects of Ford, a giant in Europe
about whose tribulations we’d been hearing so
much that optimism about the future was proving
difficult. He smiled, grabbed a couple of magic
markers and set off on an explanation of “human-
centred design”, a term we suddenly realised we’d
been hearing all over the estate. Darren Palmer
had used it; so had Bill Ford.
According to Hackett, ‘normal’ design can make
things better while appearing to make them worse.
“Think of flying or driving as examples,” he says.
“We think of both as worse than they used to be,
even though it’s not true.” The objective of human-
centred design – and he illustrated the principle
perfectly with a diagram – is to reduce the ‘design
gap’ between truth and perception by finding the
particular sources of difficulty and refining them
away. That, he told us, was an important principle
being entrenched at Ford, which he expected to
make a difference.
Are the public getting it? This seemed a fair
question. “Not yet,” Hackett answered instantly,
“because our people are still putting it into action.
But they will.”
JIM HACKETT: THE MAN WHO RUNS IT ALL
Hackett’s book
collection reflects
his priorities
think electrification means no driving fun, but that
couldn’t be further from the truth.”
He r e fe r s t o l i n ge r i n g s u gge s t ion s of a n F C A-
R e n au lt-Ni s s a n me r ge r a s e v ide nc e t h at s uc h ne w s
i s “a h a rbi n ge r of t h i n gs t o c ome ”, a lt hou g h he
points to his own company’s recent co-operative
de a l w it h V W ov e r c om me r c i a l s , t r uc k s a nd
electric vehicles – which involves no ownership
changes – as Ford’s preferred way. “We’re likely
to be opportunistic because we’re in a good place
at the moment,” he says. “We’re investing wisely
for the future, our current range is strong and our
production cadence is picking up. We’re about
to have one of the strongest showrooms in the
industry, although we’re still very much open for
tactical co-operation.”
As an implacable supporter of Detroit through
e v e r y one of it s d i f f ic u lt y e a r s , Bi l l Ford i s hu ge l y
p opu l a r w he r e v e r he go e s. He i s f a mou sl y mo de s t
while being well aware of the importance his
family’s heritage has to the 116-year-old marque.
“People know we’re not just a faceless corporation,”
he says. “We’re accountable. I’m not going
anywhere. People know how to find me, and that
goes for dealers, employees, customers, everybody.
This my life. I’m working for my children and my
grandchildren, and I hope they’ll continue.”
Bi l l Ford’s p e r s on a l s t a nd i n g h a s t a k e n a
further boost over the past two years, since his
epic decision to acquire the decaying but hugely
imposing Michigan Central Station complex and
convert it to a mobility campus for 2500 Ford
employees and as many others from universities,
tech partners, retailers and the public.
“I used to drive past that place every day,” says
Ford. “I hated it. It was the poster child for the
de c ay of D e t r oit , c on s t a nt l y b e i n g u s e d a s a w ay
of i l lu s t r at i n g A me r ic a’s mo s t t r ouble d c it y. Tw o
years ago I started wondering if we really could
find a role for it. I started talking about the idea
internally, we put a plan together and the whole
thing came together pretty quickly.
“The outpouring of emotion from people all over
south Michigan has been amazing. It signals that
D e t r oit r e a l l y i s on it s w ay ba c k. T he y k now t h i s i s
muc h mor e t h a n ju s t t he r e s t or at ion of a b e aut i f u l
building, which would have been cool in itself. But
now they know this is where we’re going to invent
the future of mobility, and that’s really special.” ◊
Unscheduled meet
with the CEO included
whiteboard presentation
Bill Ford, Henry’s great-grandson, collects Mustangs