Founder Profile
William Clay Ford Jr.
Last reviewed: October 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Who is William Clay Ford Jr.?
William Clay Ford Jr. is a founder of Visteon Corporation, which was founded in 2000 with Jacques Nasser.
- Company founded
- Visteon Corporation
- Founded
- 2000
- Co-founders
- Jacques Nasser
Background
Princeton graduate with a master's degree from MIT's Sloan School of Management. He remains executive chair of Ford.
Founding Story
William Clay Ford Jr., great-grandson of Henry Ford, became chairman of Ford Motor Company in 1999 and chaired the board when Ford completed the Visteon spin-off in 2000. He was not a Visteon executive; he is listed because the separation was approved by the Ford board he led.
William Clay Ford Jr. was born in 1957 in Detroit. Education: MIT Sloan School of Management; Hotchkiss School.
Ford was born on May 3, 1957 and is the great-grandson of Henry Ford. He joined the Ford board in 1988, has been executive chair since 1999 and was chief executive from 2001 to 2006.