DetN Reveals Ford's Not-So-Secret Secret Plan For Survival

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

Build cars people want to buy and sell them at a profit. There. Now you know. Didn’t quite catch that? “We’re only going to be in business if we create products that people really do want and value,” [Ford CEO Alan] Mulally told The Detroit News in an exclusive interview Tuesday. “This is the essence of creating a viable Ford.” Quite why scribe Bryce G. Hoffman thinks this is some kind of revelation escapes me entirely (so to speak). No wait! It’s not a revelation; it’s an EXCLUSIVE! My guess: Ford PR gave Bryce exclusive access to Big Al where he couldn’t reveal anything of a commercially vital nature; which is a bit like making out with Adriana Lima without being able to go to second base (or so I imagine). In any case, we learn sweet F.A., other than Bryce loves him some FoMoCo and there’s a Thunderbird Room on the eleventh floor of the Blue Oval HQ (which several of our Best and Brightest knew anyway). Oh hang on; “Benefits, including the bonuses paid to Mulally and other senior executives, are being cut.” A story! An honest-to-God this is news news story! So, spill Bryce. Who? How much? Bryce? Hello? Sigh. OK, I’ll make the call. Do I have to do everything around here myself?

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Anonymous Anonymous on Nov 13, 2008

    Well...wake me up when Ford builds something desirable...

  • RobertSD RobertSD on Nov 13, 2008

    Wait, was there anything actually new in this article? No, not really. We've known for two years that Ford's turnaround was going to be "product-driven" (whether or not you believed it), and it takes about 3 years to execute a new product. We are just now three years in from Mark Fields rejoining NA and will be three years in from Mulally joining in September next year - you can see inflection points in the product lines with both these exec changes. I suppose it's good to know that they are preserving their product plans, but it's still not new ground.

  • Droid800 Droid800 on Nov 13, 2008

    @Robert SD, et al. Its not a revelation or breaking new ground for Ford, but it IS compared to what GM and Chrysler are doing. While Ford is going full steam ahead with a product-driven revival, even if it means burning through a lot of cash and risking the entire company (literally, from the buildings to the logos), GM and Chrysler are just cutting products and development to try and get by. DetN really was giving a back-handed comparison to show why GM and Chrysler are failing, and why Ford is likely to be the last one standing without a major reorganization.

  • AG AG on Nov 13, 2008

    Citing dire economic conditions at Ford Motor Company, the patriarch of the Ford Family, William Clay Ford, Sr., was forced to announce the sale of his NFL Franchise, the Detroit Lions... If only dreams came true...

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