Jim Farley
President and Chief Executive Officer
2020 – Present
6 years (current)
Key Decisions & Impact
Appointed CEO in October 2020, Jim Farley immediately recognized that incremental change was insufficient for Ford to survive the rapid, industry-wide transition to electrification. He initiated the sweeping 'Ford+' strategy, making the radical decision to literally split the company's automotive operations into two distinct, separate businesses: 'Ford Blue' for traditional internal combustion engines and 'Ford Model e' for electric vehicles. This structural divorce was designed to isolate the cash-generating legacy business from the agile, tech-focused EV division, allowing the latter to operate with the speed and software-centric mindset of a Silicon Valley startup.
Legacy
Farley's aggressive, uncompromising leadership has forced a profound cultural and structural modernization at the 120-year-old automaker. While navigating severe pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and volatile raw material costs, he has accelerated Ford's EV development pipeline while simultaneously maximizing the profitability of the company's core commercial vehicle segment (Ford Pro). His willingness to challenge entrenched, legacy dealer models and advocate for direct-to-consumer, non-negotiable EV pricing demonstrates a clear commitment to transforming Ford into a modern mobility and technology platform.