{"243861":{"#nid":"243861","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Mulally Speaks on Remaking Ford","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EHow do you turn an automotive company around when the U.S. auto industry has taken nosedive, followed by a hard-hitting global economic downturn? You focus your strategy on core competencies and change the corporate culture that prevailed during the industry tailspin.\u0026nbsp; At least that\u2019s how Ford Motor Company President and CEO Alan Mulally explained his company\u2019s turnaround over the past several years.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMulally took questions from more than 200 Georgia Tech students and faculty in his hour-long town hall-style meeting on Oct. 1. As a Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute Distinguished Lecture, Mulally explained how it took a culture change that embraced openness and accountability to move the company forward. This included getting the divisions to accurately report what was happening within the organization. When he first arrived, Mulally introduced a color-coded reporting system that highlighted areas that were performing well (in green), those that were off plan (in yellow) and those that needed attention (in red). Unfortunately, in the beginning, all reports showed green despite the company\u2019s forecast for losses of $17 billion that year. Presenting a new kind of leadership, Mulally encouraged Ford\u2019s leaders to acknowledge the current reality. After several weeks, one team changed its report to red while the rest remained green. Eventually, the rest of the units followed suit.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe needed to create an environment where it was safe to be open and accountable if we were going to turn Ford around,\u201d he explained. \u201cWhen those reports started changing colors, it was a breakthrough moment.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMulally also explained that the company had to focus its strategy in order to survive. The company outlined four core competencies that today are carried throughout every aspect of the business. Those four competencies are best-in-class quality, fuel efficiency, safety and technology. So, how did Mulally and team determine these four competencies?\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFirst, it went back to the basics and focused on what made the company a success in the first place with No. 1 selling products like the Fiesta and the Taurus. When Mulally arrived at Ford, the company had some 97 nameplates under its brand. Today, it has only 16. In fact, when one student asked Mulally which car he drives, Mulally replied that he drives every Ford vehicle and several from the competition to benchmark Ford\u2019s designs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe second way the company determined its core competencies was taking the \u201cunique approach\u201d of listening to its customers. He used the marketing of the Fiesta as an example. The head of marketing said that to market these cars, the company could not simply use talking heads, which had been the go-to marketing tactic in the past. The marketing director recommended giving away 100 Fiestas to customers, allowing them to drive them and blog about it. When some of the Ford team said, \u201cWe can\u2019t do that. What if they don\u2019t like it?\u201d The marketing director simply replied, \u201cDon\u2019t we need to know that?\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA few students also raised questions about environmental concerns. The solution, in Mulally\u2019s eyes, is twofold. Industry can continue to improve fuel efficiencies and look at alternative fuel sources as well as provide more electric options. But, there must also be a change in policy, especially in terms of dependency on imported oil in the United States. In China, he noted, the government is taking steps to cleaning up the environment when it comes to automobiles.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cChina is very concerned about the environment,\u201d Mulally explained. \u201cGovernment is driving the change in automotive production in that country by setting quotas for hybrids, electric and hydrogen.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELooking ahead, one student asked about the importance university research will play in Ford\u2019s future. Mulally responded: \u201cIt will continue to increase because that public-private partnership is a win-win for everybody. That partnership is the foundation, and in the U.S., we are starting to get that back. The United States is now putting importance on manufacturing from a policy perspective.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute hosts its first Distinguished Lecture with Ford Motor Company\u2019s Alan Mulally.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute hosts its first Distinguished Lecture with Ford Motor Company\u2019s Alan Mulally."}],"uid":"27857","created_gmt":"2013-10-09 16:20:39","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:15:05","author":"Tracy Heath","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2013-10-09T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2013-10-09T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"243871":{"id":"243871","type":"image","title":"Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute Presents Distinguished Lecturer Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally","body":null,"created":"1449243704","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:41:44","changed":"1475894919","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:48:39","alt":"Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute Presents Distinguished Lecturer Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally","file":{"fid":"197861","name":"10052927016_d6652c2619_h.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/10052927016_d6652c2619_h_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/10052927016_d6652c2619_h_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":549973,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/10052927016_d6652c2619_h_0.jpg?itok=MQtmSON-"}},"244231":{"id":"244231","type":"image","title":"Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute Hosts Ford\u0027s Alan Mulally","body":null,"created":"1449243722","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:42:02","changed":"1475894921","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:48:41","alt":"Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute Hosts Ford\u0027s Alan Mulally","file":{"fid":"197874","name":"10052900705_fab62e3076_h.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/10052900705_fab62e3076_h_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/10052900705_fab62e3076_h_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":562729,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/10052900705_fab62e3076_h_0.jpg?itok=KyyoeUjJ"}}},"media_ids":["243871","244231"],"groups":[{"id":"155831","name":"Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute (GTMI)"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"946","name":"distinguished lecture"},{"id":"675","name":"Ford"},{"id":"215","name":"manufacturing"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETina Guldberg\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E404-385-4950\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["tina.guldberg@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}