Is Ford's Alan Mulally a lame duck?

[doh]

http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/25/news...ce=yahoo_quote

NEW YORK (Fortune) -- In recent months, life seemed to have returned to near-normal at Ford Motor. New CEO Alan Mulally had settled in after 18 months in the job, and the company was well along executing his major objective: integrating the company's global operations.

But normalcy has a short half-life in Dearborn, and chaos returned this week, thanks to a remarkably thick-headed remark by a top executive. In an interview with Automotive News published Monday, Ford's group vice president of human resources, Joe Laymon, decided to disclose the names of six executives he said were being considered to succeed Mulally.

Immediately, the company went into panic mode.

"I'm not going to go there," said one of the purported candidates, Americas boss Mark Fields, when Automotive News asked him about the report. "I'm going to let the chips fall where they may."

Another candidate, global marketing head Jim Farley, who has only been on the job for a few months, also tried to downplay the report. "You earn those opportunities," he said. "Right now, I haven't done anything.

Laymon's untimely disclosure will have the following negative effects on the company:

It immediately sets up a horse race among the six candidates that could create unnecessary conflict and backbiting. Ford has a history of corporate infighting going back decades (Harry Bennett and Henry Ford II, Henry Ford II and Lee Iacocca, Bill Ford and Jac Nasser) and hardly needs any more of it.

It immediately makes Mulally a lame duck, even though his contract doesn't expire until 2011. Scuttlebutt around the copy machine will now focus more on who will replace Mulally than what Mulally himself is trying to accomplish.

It preempts the board of directors (including two members of the Ford family), which has the exclusive right to pick the CEO.

"It was not what I would advise a client to do," said veteran headhunter Greg Carrott, managing director of Chicago-based Cavoure LLP, an executive search firm

Says Carrott, who frequently consults with companies on succession planning: "When you make succession planning public like this early on, you create a horse race. In an environment that has been historically as political at Ford, you run the risk of creating opposing camps when they should all be working together. As those camps start to form, the CEO's authority will be demonstrably undercut."

Laymon has a history of speaking out of turn, apparently to demonstrate his corporate clout. In an interview with Fortune in 2004, he volunteered the information that all the top executives at Ford worked with executive coaches and that he was the coach for chairman and CEO Bill Ford. Laymon's off-the-cuff comment produced some hasty scrambling at headquarters, including demurrals from Ford executives who said they didn't know what an executive coach actually was, and they certainly didn't have one.

So, who made Laymon's list? The two marketing guys, Fields and Farley. One numbers cruncher, CFO Don LeClair. A manufacturing specialist, Joe Hinrichs. And two Ford of Europe executives, Lewis Booth and Steve Odell,

There is one curious omission: Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of product development. Kuzak is leading the effort to integrate the company's engineering resources globally, is in charge of developing all of Ford's new cars and trucks, and is arguably the second most powerful man in the company. He's to Ford (F, Fortune 500) what Bob Lutz is to GM (GM, Fortune 500).

Kuzak certainly isn't campaigning for the job, and some insiders say he doesn't have the personality for it, but he's widely respected within the company, has worked in both England and Detroit, and, at 57, isn't too old to take over when Mulally leaves.

So if you are Ford, what do you do to put the genie back in the bottle?

[K-1]

Originally Posted by doh

So if you are Ford, what do you do to put the genie back in the bottle?

Easy - you say, "big whoop" and go back to doing your job.

[usa1]

Wow. You included the whole article minus the last 5 sentences.

Mark

[jbernie]

I thought it was prudent of large companies to ensure they had a succession plan in place just in case something should happen to the current CEO. It isn't fun but they need to make sure business as usual should say the CEO have a heart attack or other life threatening medical event or the other unexpected events like a car crash etc.

That being said, generally people in the know don't go around telling everyone who those people are. Sounds like someone just got themselves a nice little red mark on their files.

While ever Ford is improving and they generally are Mulally is safe. With the market down turn he is probably safer, it is a very good time to force through some of the less pleasant changes.

[Whitesky]

You fire the HR guy that opened his mouth. That's a department where you can easily replace someone with no impact.

[Timekeeper]

Laymon is Lay off man!

[Rocket 88]

Originally Posted by Whitesky

You fire the HR guy that opened his mouth. That's a department where you can easily replace someone with no impact.

Completely agree. Put the HR guy in his place or out on his butt.

FYI - Dr. Martin Keely, Professor in Petroleum Geology isn't much of a scientist (generally an unpublished "rent-a-sceptic" if your do some research on him). If your looking for people with vested interest its not scientist with actual research but people involved in the petroleum industry.

[SUPERBADD75]

all the top executives at Ford worked with executive coaches and that he was the coach for chairman and CEO Bill Ford.

clearly the guy's an idiot if he was Bill Ford's "Executive Coach", a lot of good that did. i don't think it matters, if Mulally keeps Ford's fortunes looking up, he will be around for a while. if he doesn't, Ford's doomed no matter who they decide upon. right now, IMO, GM seems to be the only domestic automaker that has a clue what to do with themselves, Ford and Chrysler are having to empty their boats with pails and hope they stay afloat long enough for something to work. meanwhile, Ford has all kinds of answers overseas, and somehow they just won't get them over here. Mondeo, Euro-Focus, Falcon, Territory, and maybe even bring over the Ka with $5gal gas coming. give up the tired crap that you're peddling, Ford. it's all about product. you don't need Mulally or any other executive for that, you need to listen to the consumers.

[tgagneguam]

Why is it when some industry executives make off-the-cuff comments they're considered leaders, but when this guy does so much hatred is directed toward him? Is it that people simply disagree with this guy's particular message, so now Ford should call him on it? Different circumstances in some ways, similar in other ways. The different reactions to recent off-the-cuff executive comments seem duplicitous, nonetheless.

I'm all about people speaking freely, but when you're hired by a corporation, when they pay your salary (and stock options, and company car, and "loans," and healthcare, and private jet flights, and...), they get to tell you how to comport yourself as an extension of the corporation. I think this man needs to be put on a short leash or let go, especially considering this doesn't seem to be the first faux pas of its kind for him.

But I do wonder who the villian in this situation is? The man who keeps making these remarks publicly or the corporation that readily tolerates those remarks.

[JVal14]

Laymon has a history of speaking out of turn, apparently to demonstrate his corporate clout.

First of all, how much corporate clout could a VP of HR have? HR people get relatively little respect from corporate suits, and I'm sure it's worse in domestic auto companies where at least half of the employees are governed by their union, not the company that employs them. Secondly, of all people, an HR exec should know when to keep his mouth shut. What is this guy still doing there if this is his second high profile screw-up? Especially considering his first foul was to immasculate top-brass, who are notoriously ego-driven. I'm surprised this guy isn't getting death threats. This is a great example of executive inefficiency: Ford's employee relations aren't great, so this guy is apparently not doing an outstanding job, yet he's been around for years despite being a P R nightmare. What is going on at Ford?

[Caleb02]

I'm not going to go there," said one of the purported candidates, Americas boss Mark Fields, when Automotive News asked him about the report. "I'm going to let the chips fall where they may."

notice how the klast word is may. now could that be a clue as to jay mays being the next ceo? Or will Ford be sold off.

[bone]

It was a faux pas for sure and I'm also sure Mulally has spoken to him. I don't see any requirement to fire the guy unless he's totally incorridgeable. Lutz(I like the guy) has,in my opinion, made more mistakes in a month than this guy has in a career and I'm sure he has been spoken to as well. He wasn't fired nor should he have been. Oh, I wonder whether Laymon's comments were to be, "off the record." Edit. Just read in Automotive News that Laymon has resigned to take up a position with Chevron.

[mbukukanyau]

The Board should just extend Mullaly's contract by 6 years right now. and fire this guy

[tgagneguam]

Originally Posted by bone

...Edit. Just read in Automotive News that Laymon has resigned to take up a position with Chevron.

I take this bit of news as Mulally finally exercising his clout: "resign or else."

[BrickTamland]

Originally Posted by doh

There is one curious omission: Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of product development. Kuzak is leading the effort to integrate the company's engineering resources globally, is in charge of developing all of Ford's new cars and trucks, and is arguably the second most powerful man in the company. He's to Ford (F, Fortune 500) what Bob Lutz is to GM (GM, Fortune 500).

Just curious; how long has Kuzak had this position?