Thursday, April 9, 2009

Ford is not Obama Motors

[obama-michelin-man-vincenzo-sancte-pater-7vs.jpg]"NEW YORK – General Motors and Chrysler put on their best brave faces here at the New York International Auto Show, but Ford Motor came out guns blazing, determined to separate itself from the other two Detroit-based auto makers...

And Ford, unlike its Detroit rivals, had an army of senior executives, designers, engineers and marketers here, all available to talk the Ford line. Ford is trying desperately to shape its message and that message boils down to this: 'I'm not with stupid.'

That's my own harsh translation, but make no mistake: Ford does not want to be lumped in with GM and Chrysler. Ford is not taking government bailout money, company types say. Bottom line: Ford is not Obama Motors..."

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1 comment:

Paul said...

The Ford family still has the majority of it's fortune tied up in Ford Motor Co. ! And, the CEO is a member of the family and other Ford family members are on the board. That is the critical difference.

It boils down to this: A single family has a lot at risk, and enough influence to guide the company. The CEO and enough members of the board stand to lose much of their personal fortunes if Ford goes Bankrupt. It isn't just a job and a golden parachute for them.

In 2002 they made efforts to put Ford's balance sheet into a defensive cash position - GM and Chrysler did not. A policy they adopted because long term viability was able to triumph over 2003-2008 bonuses for the execs.