Ford vs Volkswagen: Founders, CEOs and History

Ford

Founded

1903

Headquarters

Dearborn, Michigan

Current CEO

Jim Farley

Employees

169,000

Volkswagen

Founded

1937

Headquarters

Wolfsburg, Germany

Current CEO

Oliver Blume

Employees

663,000

Ford

• Henry Ford

  Ford Motor Company possesses arguably the most famous, influential founding story in the entire history of global capitalism, tracing its roots to the ambition of the man who invented modern mass production.

• Alexander Y. Malcomson

  Alexander Malcomson was essential to the creation of Ford Motor Company because he helped turn Henry Ford's mechanical vision into an incorporated enterprise.

Volkswagen

• Ferdinand Porsche

  Ferdinand Porsche (1875-1951) was an Austrian-born automotive engineer who had worked for Lohner, Austro-Daimler and Daimler-Benz before opening his own design office in Stuttgart in 1931.

Ford

1. William Clay Ford Jr.2001–2006

   Chairman and CEO

   He handed the chief executive role to Alan Mulally in 2006 and remained executive chairman.

   Source
2. Alan Mulally2006–2014

   Former President and CEO

   Mulally is universally recognized as the savior of the modern Ford Motor Company. By breaking down entrenched corporate fiefdoms and instilling a culture of radical transparency and operational discipline, he orchestrated one of the most remarkable corporate t…

   Source
3. Mark Fields2014–2017

   President and CEO

   Ford announced investments in electric and autonomous vehicles during his tenure, and the board replaced him in 2017 with Jim Hackett.

   Source
4. Jim Hackett2017–2020

   President and CEO

   Hackett launched the redesign of Ford operations before retiring in 2020, when Jim Farley became chief executive.

   Source
5. Jim Farley2020–present

   President and Chief Executive Officer

   Farley's aggressive, uncompromising leadership has forced a profound cultural and structural modernization at the 120-year-old automaker.

   Source

Volkswagen

1. Hermann Münch1946–1947

   Chief Executive Officer

   Early executive involved in the incredibly complex immediate post-war administration of the completely destroyed factory under British military control.

   Source
2. Heinrich Nordhoff1948–1968

   Chief Executive Officer

   The absolute legendary post-war architect who took the ruins of the VW factory and transformed the Beetle into a massive, globally beloved cultural icon and economic miracle.

   Source
3. Kurt Lotz1968–1971

   Chief Executive Officer

   Early post-war leader who began the critical process of diversifying VW's lineup beyond relying entirely on a single model (the Beetle).

   Source
4. Rudolf Leiding1971–1975

   Chief Executive Officer

   Crucial CEO who managed the extremely difficult, highly risky transition away from the iconic but severely outdated Beetle toward modern, front-wheel-drive water-cooled cars (like the Golf).

   Source
5. Toni Schmücker1975–1982

   Chief Executive Officer

   Guided the company through the severe financial crises of the 1970s, ensuring the successful launch and massive adoption of the original VW Golf.

   Source
6. Carl Hahn1982–1993

   Chief Executive Officer

   As CEO in the 1980s, he executed the massive, highly strategic acquisitions of SEAT and Skoda, laying the foundation for VW's absolute dominance in Europe.

   Source
7. Ferdinand Piëch1993–2002

   Chief Executive Officer

   As the legendary, absolutely ruthless patriarch (and grandson of Ferdinand Porsche), he transformed VW from a struggling mass-market brand into the most powerful automotive conglomerate on Earth.

   Source
8. Bernd Pischetsrieder2002–2006

   Chief Executive Officer

   Serving as CEO from 2002 to 2006, he oversaw the incredibly complex integration of massive luxury brands like Bugatti and Bentley into the VW Group portfolio.

   Source
9. Martin Winterkorn2007–2015

   Chief Executive Officer

   As the notoriously demanding, absolutely feared CEO, he oversaw massive global expansion but fostered a culture of absolute terror that led engineers to cheat rather than admit failure.

   Source
10. Matthias Müller2015–2018

    Chief Executive Officer

    As CEO during the darkest period in modern VW history, he initiated the massive cultural purge of the toxic, highly secretive engineering culture that caused the cheating scandal.

    Source
11. Herbert Diess2018–2022

    Chief Executive Officer

    Serving as CEO, he forcefully dragged the massive, highly bureaucratic legacy automaker into the Tesla era, though his abrasive style alienated the powerful Porsche-Piëch families.

    Source
12. Oliver Blume2022–present

    Chairman of the Board of Management

    He also ran Porsche AG alongside the group role until Michael Leiters took over as Porsche CEO on January 1, 2026, leaving Blume focused on Volkswagen Group.

    Source

Ford

• Electriphi2021Undisclosed
• Spin2018$100M
• Autonomic2018Undisclosed
• Land Rover2000$2.7B
• Volvo Cars1999$6.5B
• Jaguar Cars1989$2.5B

Volkswagen

• Porsche AG2012Undisclosed
• Bentley Motors1998Undisclosed
• Auto Union / Audi1965Undisclosed