List of leaders of Ford Motor Company

CEOs and Chairmen

The position of CEO and Chairman have been assumed as a single position, unless noted (CEOs who were not Chairman were generally President at the time). From April to September 2006, the role of President was absorbed into the role of Executive Chairman.[1]

CEO and Chairman of Ford Motor Company
No. Name Took office Left office Role
1 John S. Gray 1903 1906 CEO
2 Henry Ford[2] 1906 1945 CEO
3 Henry Ford II[2] 1945 1979 CEO
– Ernest R. Breech[2] 1955 1960 Chairman
– Henry Ford II[3] 1960 March 13, 1980 Chairman
4 Philip Caldwell[4][5] 1979 February 1, 1985 CEO
– Philip Caldwell[3][4][5] March 13, 1980 February 1, 1985 Chairman
5 Donald Petersen[5][6] February 1, 1985 March 1, 1990 CEO and Chairman
6 Harold Arthur Poling[6] March 1, 1990 1993 CEO and Chairman
7 Alexander Trotman November 1993 December 31, 1998 CEO and Chairman
8 Jacques Nasser[7] January 1, 1999 2001 CEO
– William Clay Ford Jr. January 1, 1999 September 5, 2006 Chairman
9 William Clay Ford Jr.[8] October 30, 2001 September 5, 2006 CEO
– William Clay Ford Jr.[8] September 5, 2006 Present Executive Chairman
10 Alan Mulally September 5, 2006 July 1, 2014 CEO
11 Mark Fields July 1, 2014 May 22, 2017 CEO
12 James Hackett May 22, 2017 September 30, 2020 CEO
13 Jim Farley[9] October 1, 2020 Present CEO

Presidents

The President of Ford Motor Company has been a key officer since 1903, with four noted vacancies after Semon Knudsen was fired in 1969, after two vice-chairmen were appointed in 1987, Philip Benton Jr's retirement on January 1, 1993, and Jim Padilla's retirement in April 2006.[10][11][12]

President of Ford Motor Company
No. Name Took office Left office Notes
1 John S. Gray[13] June 17, 1903 October 22, 1906
2 Henry Ford[13] October 22, 1906 January 1, 1919
3 Edsel Ford[13] January 1, 1919 May 26, 1943
4 Henry Ford[13] May 26, 1943 September 21, 1945
5 Henry Ford II[13] September 21, 1945 November 9, 1960
6 Robert McNamara[13] November 9, 1960 January 1, 1961 The first non-Ford family member to be president. Left to become Secretary of Defense after just two months.
7 John Dykstra[13] January 1, 1961 May 1, 1963
8 Arjay Miller[13] May 1, 1963 February 6, 1968
9 Semon Knudsen[13][14] February 6, 1968 September 1969
Office vacant September 1969 – December 10, 1970
– Robert Hampson[10] 1969 1970 President of Non-Automotive
– Robert Stevenson[10] 1969 1970 President of Automotive International
– Lee Iacocca[10] 1969 1970 President of Automotive North America
10 Lee Iacocca[10][13][15][14] December 10, 1970 July 13, 1978
11 Philip Caldwell[3][16] October 16, 1978 March 13, 1980
12 Donald Petersen[3][13] March 13, 1980 February 1, 1985
13 Harold Arthur Poling[5][13][11] February 1, 1985 October 13, 1987
Office vacant October 13, 1987 – 1990
14 Philip Benton[12] 1990 January 1, 1993
Office vacant January 1, 1993 – 1999
15 Jacques Nasser[2] 1999 2001
16 William Clay Ford, Jr.[2][13] 2001 2001
17 Nick Scheele[17] October 2001 2004 President and COO
17 Nick Scheele April 2004 February 2005 President
18 Jim Padilla[1] February 2005 April 2006 President and COO
office vacant April to September 2006
19 Alan Mulally[18] September 2006 June 2014 President and CEO
20 Mark Fields[19] July 1, 2014 May 2017 President and CEO
21 Jim Hackett[20] May 2017 October 2020 President and CEO
22 James D. Farley Jr.[21] October 2020 present President and CEO

References

  1. ^ a b "Ford President, COO Jim Padilla To Retire". Motor Trend. April 21, 2006. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Ford Motor Company chronology". Henry Ford Museum. Archived from the original on February 10, 2014.
  3. ^ a b c d "Henry Ford II gives up chairmanship at Ford". Democrat and Chronicle. 1980-03-14. p. 7D. Retrieved 2021-01-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Have you driven a Ford Lately? Thanks to Donald Peterson you may want to". Washington Monthly. October 1986. Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d "Caldwell Leaves as Chairman of Ford Motor Co". The Los Angeles Times. 1985-02-02. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  6. ^ a b Gardner, Greg (1990-02-27). "Petersen hands over Ford's keys". Detroit Free Press. p. 1. Retrieved 2021-01-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Jacques Nasser". NPR. July 27, 2000. Archived from the original on October 20, 2002. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Nasser out as Ford CEO". CNN. October 30, 2001. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  9. ^ "James D. Farley, Jr". Ford Media. October 1, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  10. ^ a b c d e "Iacocca Before Chrysler - Ford". lehigh.edu. Retrieved 2021-01-10.
  11. ^ a b Spelich, John (1987-10-14). "2 units formed at Ford". Detroit Free Press. p. 7B. Retrieved 2021-01-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ a b "Ford reshuffles top ranks". The Baltimore Sun. November 13, 1992. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Ford Motor Co. Chronology, 1903-2003". The Henry Ford Museum. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Henry II ends Iacocca's quest for the top spot at Ford Motor". Automotive News. June 16, 2003. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  15. ^ "Lee Iacocca, Visionary Automaker Who led Both Ford and Chrysler, Is Dead at 94". The New York Times. July 2, 2019. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  16. ^ Brown, Terry (1978-09-15). "Philip Caldwell named president of Ford Co". Chicago Tribune. p. 76. Retrieved 2021-01-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Nick Scheele, former president and COO of Ford, dies at age 70". Automotive News. July 18, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  18. ^ Ford Newsroom, "ALAN MULALLY Retired President and Chief Executive Officer"
  19. ^ [1]
  20. ^ [2]
  21. ^ Ford Newsroom, "JAMES D. FARLEY,JR. President and Chief Executive Officer"