US:Ford boss plans radical overhaul - Ford Forums

Stacy94PGT · 12-22-2006, 11:19

Report: Ford boss plans radical overhaul

Reuters

NEW YORK -- Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally's agenda calls for the automaker to plough through "gut-wrenching" change to achieve profitability by 2009, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site today.

At a board meeting last week, Mulally surprised directors by asking them to follow him from the boardroom, down a flight of stairs to his secret "war room," where his plan for the company is mounted on the walls, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

The pages contain charts, graphs and lists of Ford products and markets -- his road map to turn around the troubled automaker, the newspaper reported.

The newspaper also printed the full text of a company-wide email it says Mulally sent on Oct. 13. In the email, Mulally writes that the company is going though an "extraordinarily gut-wrenching time".

The paper reported that in the email, Mulally predicted, "Some very good and loyal people are going to leave this company between now and next summer, and that's going to be tough on everyone." But he added: "As demoralizing as a slide down may be, the ride back up is infinitely more exhilarating."

In a note to clients earlier this month, Merrill Lynch analyst John Murphy said he expected Mulally to give more detail on his operating plan as soon as the Detroit auto show in early January.

Ford in September warned its auto business would not make a profit in North America for another three years. The company is slashing costs and jobs to turn the business around.

Former Boeing executive Mulally was named CEO in early September and took on the position full-time in October.