Ford Motor Company will have a new CEO by October

Ford Motor Company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Jim Hackett, will be stepping down its current position soon, and will then be replaced by the brand’s current Chief Operating Officer (COO), James D. Farley Jr., a renown man of the industry who joined Ford in 2007 from Toyota Motor, where he played a major role in launching the Lexus brand.

It was 3 years back when Ford Motor Company brought in the current CEO, and he was able to achieve mixed results for the company. Jim Hackett is set to retire on October 1 and James D. Farley Jr. will take the titles of president and CEO, and join Ford’s board of directors.

Just recently, the company is starting to introduce some of its models developed under Mr. Hackett, such as the redesigned F-150 pickup truck, a new series of SUVs under the Bronco brand, and the Mustang Mach E that's an electric SUV which resembles the famous muscle car. This is in conjunction with Jim’s goal of revitalizing Ford’s operations and steering the company toward vehicles that would generate profits and invest in emerging technologies like electric and self-driving vehicles.

Behind those successful chapters, Jim Hackett was criticized by Wall Street analysts for stopping short of presenting a full turnaround plan with detailed financial goals and timetables. This includes the following goals of the CEO as mentioned above. Unfortunately, the following strategies did not generate quite an impact on the company’s bottom line and stock price. That said, Ford’s profits fell last 2018 and 2019, with last year dropping to $47,000,000. Also, given the amidst pandemic, the company lost $876,000,000 in the first half of the year.

Moving forward, the soon-to-be-elected CEO, James D. Farley Jr. said that his first priority is to ensure the smooth transition. Also, the future CEO aims to raise Ford’s profit margin in North America by 10% or more, this should somewhat revive the brand's sales in other places including Europe, China, and South America.