And so, that's the opportunity in the country, is that we now can compete anywhere in the world because of our ability to do knowledge work the way we're doing it, which means the speed in which you can innovate a product like a ventilator; that translates to vehicles; the speed at which you understand what users need; there's a ponytail problem in these masks that have air moving in them. In my tenure at the company, we have the oldest product line in recent memory at Ford. And the way we're talking to the UAW and around the world to our labor groups, particularly--and the reason--this is all people, right? He currently serves as Special Advisor to the company So, we were launching--we are launching a Mustang--electric Mustang in the fall and that's projected in our future. And so, that's--there's a lesson in this in that the distribution and the supply chains and everything were in chaos. It will follow the development, as you're suggesting. And so, most of the time after those first two weeks, everyone asked, "Hey, when will you have these?" Jim was born on April 22, 1955 and grew up in Ohio. View Jim Hackett’s professional profile on LinkedIn. There are 200+ professionals named "Jim Hackett", who use LinkedIn to exchange information, ideas, and opportunities. If we can turn the economy back on like we're talking about, I think employment at Ford is safe and our earnings can start to improve. MR. IGNATIUS: So, I'm curious whether you as a company have taken advantage of any of the hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars that have been made available for recovery. It's my pleasure to welcome you to this morning's Washington Post Live conversation, one of our series about leadership in crisis as we all together try to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Ford Motor CEO and President Jim Hackett will unexpectedly retire. But think of it this way: this represents a 4.4 percent operating margin, about half what we believe is an appropriate margin. Jim Hackett | Canada | -- | 235 connections | View Jim's homepage, profile, activity, articles Jim has 10 jobs listed on their profile. I'm most proud of, David, the fact that--it's hard to imagine this but in two weeks, we actually had prototypes designed and built of all the masks that we were going to make. In 1994, Hackett was named CEO at age 39, making him the youngest leader in the history of the company. And you know, that moment, it seems like a year ago, right? But we've been sharing with them product portfolio, all brand new, hang in there, it's going to be really great. Ford CEO Jim Hackett is stepping down, handing the reins to his protégé, Chief Operating Officer Jim Farley, who considers Apple and Baidu as much of a threat as Toyota and Tesla. I think the number that you reported was something like loss pretax of 632 million, which was even more than you had feared it might be. MR. HACKETT: Well, I think it would be safe to say that we did the design of it by ourselves. We can discover issues in your vehicle that are driving you crazy, because of a--D-DOT Ford [phonetic] is the name of our design center entity. As it relates to the country, there's so much opportunity now because we have to think more intently about being productive. And if I read the numbers right, you said the effect of the pandemic on your business was to take about $2 billion out of what would have been your profitability. [5] During this time Hackett became a proponent of design thinking, which focuses on how humans experience a product. ... Jim Hackett is back with a $3.8 billion deal to form Alta Mesa Resources. It really hadn't been redone since the middle part of the last decade. MR. IGNATIUS: Well, Jim Hackett, we want to thank you for being with us, for sharing so much of your experience at Ford. So, Wall Street's been a little challenging because they wonder when we're going to show up. Let me turn, Jim, to the impact of this lockdown, shutdown of our global economy on your company. He is also a member of the company's board of directors. MR. HACKETT: Well, clearly, the research is showing that many of these people on ventilators are dying of blood clots, frankly. We don't have three million people; it's because they will be, you know, disposed and have to be reoutfitted. MR. IGNATIUS: But to focus on that, one impression we've had watching this is that maybe there could have been a little better coordination at the federal level as this process ramped up, that states were competing for ventilators, trying to go to this one and that one, would that be one of the lessons for you as a takeaway, that we could use a little better coordination at the start? He held the position for nearly twenty years before retiring in 2014. [5] Hackett stayed on as vice chairman of the company from 2014 to 2015. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We asked him to give us some guidance about, if you were going to spend a dollar towards anything right now, where would you put it. Bentley in the UK is going to start making cars again, I think, next week. So, in '06-'08, remember, the industry almost goes bankrupt. James Patrick "Jim" Hackett (born April 22, 1955) is an American businessman. Jim Hackett will retire and become a special adviser. Jim Hackett, on the other hand, is a well-respected leader (and deservedly so). [8], On May 22, 2017, Hackett succeeded Mark Fields as president and CEO of Ford Motor Company. Hackett is the mind behind Ford’s disastrous restructuring program, which has seen the company lay off thousands of employees around the world and discontinue several beloved automobile brands like the Taurus and Focus. I want to remind folks that we'll be back on Monday at 11:00 with my colleague, Bob Costa, who will be interviewing Jane Rosenthal, who is the head of the Tribeca Film Festival, who is going to talk about the future of the entertainment business, which we need more than ever these days as we're trying to keep our spirits up and think about getting back to work. [12], In January 2019, Hackett sent an email to Ford employees that read, "2018 was mediocre by any standard. Jim has 8 jobs listed on their profile. Tesla We're making three million facemasks--because we're taking care of all the frontline responders, we're making three million facemasks for our own company. MR. HACKETT: Thank you, David. He joined Steelcase in 1981, holding a variety of sales and marketing positions. In fact, I want to tell you, this is a story--Washington Post will want to write this story about the standards that are now being created for workers like the people who go back at Ford. And then, finally, you know, we learned how much in decisionmaking and working with each other that, being on this system like you and I are, we can have really deep discussions but be focused, make a decision, and move on. And then, last week, we floated--we took $8 billion in additional debt, just through the public markets. He is a member of the executive committee of the board of directors for the National Center for Arts and Technology, as well as the boards of advisors to the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and the Life Sciences Institute at the University of Michigan. I mean, we're talking about 5- to 800 truckloads of materials, David, that have been sitting waiting to get flowed into factories that start to generate production; they can't move. 90 percent of the portfolio is going to be brand new; we just don't have the revenues for that to show. He will retire from Ford in March 2021. View Jim Hackett ( Profile )’s profile on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional community. We started Custodia because we believe future of work should empower all employees with streamlined systems and intelligent design. Have you now got an oversupply of ventilators more than your customers are going to need and are you going to switch to producing something else that's of important value for us now in this phase of the crisis? How have you given them enough distance that they can come to work and feel that they're not putting their lives at risk? His family ancestry can be traced back to both southern and central parts of Ireland; particularly, counties Waterford and Cork in the south to County Carlow in the east and County Galway in the west. And Ford stepped up at that time and, in some ways, as it did in past crises, informed a partnership with other companies to get in the ventilator business. Hackett, 65, will be succeeded by his heir apparent, Jim Farley, Ford's chief operating officer, effective Oct 1. I don't want to share the number, but it would blow you away in terms of how big the book was. View Jim Hackett’s profile on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional community. View Jim Hackett (BT)’s profile on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional community. I also served as a chairman of a bank board. So, first, your stock price has taken a beating. Now, in this quarter, what primarily is happening, and this is--you saw this in the financial industry, David, is there's--you're taking advanced charges for the probability of default in loans, with employment [sic] now at--you know, what is it, 25-30 million people--unemployment, pardon me. So, this is a big moment for us. Ford. MR. IGNATIUS: So, taking Ford as an example, would you expect, over the course of the next few months, or as you ramp up production again of vehicles, that you have testing of your employees as part of that, so that employees at work would be comfortable knowing that nobody infected was working on the shop floor with them? I was in a business roundtable call listening to a government executive, high-ranking, and the reference he made was--you know, he goes, "When we have a crisis in the United States, it's usually regional. See the complete profile on LinkedIn and discover James’ connections and jobs at similar companies. MR. HACKETT: Well, David, you know the answer for that is actually the hint for how we're going to turn the country back on, because we had to design for employee safety in an extreme way from viruses for anybody to come back. View Jim Hackett’s profile on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional community. MR. HACKETT: That's right, and I want to draw a parallel for you, because this is my 26th year, you know, running the company. James Patrick "Jim" Hackett (born April 22, 1955) is an American businessman. Jim Hackett is stepping down as chief executive of Ford Motor Co., turning the reins over to his deputy in the midst of a pandemic and while the industry grapples with new rivals and technologies. He currently serves as Special Advisor to the company[1], The Hackett family originally moved to Central Ohio via County Carlow and County Galway in Ireland. And in fact, the ventilators were high on the list, but these surgical masks, these protective kind of things so that the virus couldn’t penetrate the eyes came high on the priority list. The issue with me saying that's the date is there's a lot of constituencies that have to come along. Some of our parts depots with safe practices have been working so that we can improve and fix vehicles for security and safety. But I take it that this is, as you say--it's really happening company by company. MR. IGNATIUS: So, Jim, one more question before we turn to Ford and Ford's business going forward: As you've been in this conversion phase and making ventilators and other things that are not part of your normal production, how have you kept your workers safe on the production lines? And so, we're having regular dialogues with them. These were configurations of practices that everyone had to adhere to and you were audited to. In 2012 Jim Hackett left … So, that keyed us in a direction. That's actually been turned on. But I want to sneak in one other big promise: I am trying not to lay off anybody. We have a--we've talked about a new Bronco family that's coming out, a new F150. So, where we are today, we distribute the ventilators to state governments as well as to FEMA, and everything is flowing really well, frankly. Jim Hackett is special advisor to Ford Motor Company. MR. HACKETT: Well, some color for the audience, though, on Ford as you think about that performance, you know, it takes about 36 months to develop a vehicle. [2] Hackett is a 1977 graduate of the University of Michigan, where he played center on the football team. And what I've suggested is that what happens to companies over time, they--the design isn't fit anymore. LinkedIn is the world's largest business network, helping professionals like Jim Hackett discover inside connections to recommended job candidates, industry experts, and business partners. And the idea is to give confidence to the community that somebody is there safely next to them. What is your own plan for actually reopening, resuming production of vehicles in North America? Jim has 13 jobs listed on their profile. I mean, the key in this is that the infection rate getting below one means the probability and risks are no more in my mind than other risks you have if you're walking out in a middle of a thunderstorm and lightning was there. And because those aren't as dense from a people perspective, we think it's okay with forklift drivers to have a truck back up and let's start putting things in the factory that won't involve people being next to each other. The country is in a panic, desperate need for ventilators, people in hospitals, people in the government are looking everywhere. During his tenure, Steelcase eliminated nearly 12,000 employees as part of a downsizing and restructuring of the business;[4] he also led the company to acquire a majority stake in IDEO in 1996. MR. HACKETT: Well, I need to sneak in because, in parallel, we have nine facilities in Europe and we're turning all those on in a sequenced way, starting May 4th. ET Additionally, he is a past president of the Institute of Design Board of Overseers at the Illinois Institute of Technology. And so, the Governor of Michigan extended our shelter in place until May 15th, which is a Friday. Again, thank you very much to Jim Hackett, the CEO of Ford Motor Company; and thanks, everybody, for watching Washington Post Live. Ford didn't ask for a bailout. MR. IGNATIUS: So, Jim, as you think about reopening plants, Volkswagen and Germany got reopened on Monday. They reside in Grand Rapids, Michigan.[3]. He was the president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Company from May 2017 to October 2020. It seems, thank goodness, that the need for ventilators is not so overwhelming as we feared back in March. Who were you selling them to? The move came as Ford announced cuts to its global workforce amid efforts to address the company's declining share price and to improve profits. He served on its Sustainability and Innovation Committee and the Audit and the Nominating and Governance committees. A preview of what LinkedIn members have to say about Jim: Jim Hackett is one of the foremost experts on one-to-one marketing in the world. We have a 70-page playbook that we've put together. View the profiles of professionals named "Jim Hackett" on LinkedIn. From 1977 to 1981, Hackett held sales and management positions at Procter & Gamble in Detroit, Michigan. IGNATIUS: Well, Jim Hackett, we want to thank you for being with us, for sharing so much of your experience at Ford. And the pandemic hits. If it starts to go over one, we need to know where everybody's been, and we're going to have a much better handle on that in just a short time. So, I've been through four banking--or four crises like this. So we are aiming for much closer to $14 billion.”[13], On August 4, 2020, Ford announced that COO Jim Farley will succeed Jim Hackett as the CEO of Ford on October 1, 2020. In 2013, Hackett joined the Ford Motor Company's board of directors. So, I'm really optimistic about Ford's future. So, there's division of distance, there's protective gear, but the biggest requirement is a screening system that, to get in the building, you have to go through thermal imaging, you have to fill out a questionnaire, and you have to do that every day. Share to Linkedin; Hackett at Harvard, 2015. MR. HACKETT: Yeah, and partner. My guest this morning is Jim Hackett, who's the Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company, one of America's industrial giants. Jim has 1 job listed on their profile. I had a contact, he's actually a friend but a professional colleague at Mayo Clinic, Nick LaRusso, who used to be--have internal medicine. MR. HACKETT: I think it is in the future. But I'll tell you that when you have an enemy that you can't see, a virus, there's actually a proxy for this in the history of business, when you had something you couldn't see that you cared about, which was quality. It restructured itself; it borrowed; it leveraged everything, including the Blue Oval; and it paid all that money back in, you know, an extraordinary story. Ford has announced that Jim Hackett, who has led the company’s transformation since 2017, is retiring from the company, making way for Jim Farley to take over as President and CEO. If that happened, if there was a signal that somebody was going to, you know, get sick or that we found somebody sick, we have a plan to move very quickly now so that we isolate and corral that, so that we can keep things open this time. Here's what you need to know about Jim Hackett, 62, who succeeds Mark Fields as CEO of Ford Motor after leading the company's Smart Mobility division focused on … And so, that's what we're trying to do right now. James has 1 job listed on their profile. Is that going to be part of your regimen, do you think? Those are commercial loans; those aren't from the government. Hackett was formerly Ford president and CEO from May 2017 to October 2020, and was also a member of the company’s board of directors. They kind of think of us like Amazon.". It's a real honor to be with you, today. See the complete profile on LinkedIn and discover Jim… MR. IGNATIUS: So, that's a great story of flexibility and adaptation, but I want to drill down just a little bit. It's just days, and at that time, I was talking to people in the White House about what was going to happen to our production, so they understood, as we were shutting down. So, I think there's just a great story here how the country's thrived in the face of this challenge. MR. IGNATIUS: So, we should look for May 18 as the possible beginning of your return to production in Michigan and elsewhere. It's the issue that the country really is now trying to get its mind around, I should just note, as you referred in our conversation of "Bill," I'm assuming that's William Ford, who's your Chairman. It's three years before that it's in consideration. MR. HACKETT: Well, this is a moment of pride, frankly, because I wasn't here, but I'm really proud of Bill Ford and, later, Alan Mulally. MR. HACKETT: You know, David, when I was younger in business, I saw, like, leveraged buyout CEOs. Jim has 1 job listed on their profile. And I'm assuming that you'll be using these same rules to keep your workers safe and that you'll be confident that, through testing, through social distance at work, all the other things we've talked about, you'll have a safe workforce when you come back. MR. IGNATIUS: So, let me ask you, you geared up big time to produce ventilators. Hackett spent thirty years with the Grand Rapids-based office furniture company Steelcase. We've never had a problem with the recurrence of the virus for doing all the protocols. Jim has 1 job listed on their profile. Are you receiving any loans or cash grants to get you through? Toyota Motors 3. He's been in that job since 2017. We learned from that, so our balance sheet was really boosted going into this problem. Hackett oversaw the formation of Ford Smart Mobility, a unit responsible for experimenting with car-sharing programs at Ford Motor Company, self-driving ventures and other programs aimed at helping Ford better compete with Uber, Alphabet Inc. and other tech giants looking to edge in on the auto industry.