How Farley proved himself ready for top Ford job

DETROIT -- Jim Hackett knew last Christmas that his time as CEO of Ford Motor was running short.

While on a holiday trip in California, he met with Executive Chairman Bill Ford, who also happened to be in the state.

The two talked about the year -- which had ended on a sour note financially for the company -- and Hackett's future.

"We never really firmed up timing, but we were doing an assessment of where we were," Hackett told Automotive News Europe sister publication Automotive News on Tuesday. "It was like, how much more time do I have? ... At 65, I just thought it was time."

Hackett previously said Ford had a number of talented executives who could succeed him.

"As I sat back and reflected on the leadership, there was one name I found," Hackett said.

That name was Jim Farley, who was elevated by the company to chief operating officer in February. If he already had the inside track to become the next CEO, he cemented the decision once the coronavirus hit the U.S.

As the Ford team scrambled, Farley worked with dealers to help ensure they would receive government loans, and he walked the factory floor at Ford's Dearborn Truck Plant before management ultimately decided to shut down manufacturing operations for two months.

"When the pandemic hit, Jim Farley so distinguished himself," Hackett said. "There's no script, there's no plan. The team was voicing to me how the accomplishments they made came from his leadership."

Farley, 58, has a deep love for Ford.

He spent the first 17 years of his career at Toyota, where he launched the Scion brand and served as general manager of the Lexus division, before Ford hired him away in 2007.

Ford dealers gave him a standing ovation after a passionate speech about six months later, The New York Times reported. "I believe, in many ways, the future of Ford is the future of our country," Farley told 1,400 dealers who had gathered in Las Vegas. "The work here is simply more important than the work I was doing at Toyota."

He traces his love for the automaker back to his grandfather, Emmet Tracy, who worked for Henry Ford in the early 1900s.

Farley lists his grandfather as a mentor, citing his humility and that he rode a bike to work into his 90s. When Farley would visit him over the holidays, they would page through issues of Automotive News.

Farley also credits Wayne Rainey, a champion motorcycle racer who became paralyzed after a crash, as a great friend and inspiration who has taught him a number of life lessons.

He says has learned a lot, at least from a business perspective, from Hackett.

"I, for one, have been changed as a leader because of Jim Hackett," Farley said. "Not only for his ambition for the company, that we will not cede our future to anyone including technology companies, but his ability to bring new ways of thinking into Ford that stick, that don't fall off the wall."

Dealers credit Farley with being an approachable, inquisitive leader.

"He doesn't know what a time clock is," said Rhett Ricart, CEO of Ricart Automotive Group. "I'll get text messages from him Saturday morning, Sunday night. He is totally engaged."

When he's not working, Farley spends much of his time in downtown Detroit and often volunteers at the Pope Francis Center, which provides services to the city's homeless people.

Jim Seavitt, owner of Village Ford in Dearborn, has known Farley both personally and professionally for years. He says Farley is a great athlete — "he can water ski like you wouldn't believe" — who cares deeply about the industry.

Farley is known to race Ford vehicles on the weekends.

"His background has been cars all his life," Seavitt said. "He's a real car guy."

Both Seavitt and Ricart said they expect Farley to take a more hands-on approach with dealers than his predecessor. They are encouraged by Ford's upcoming products and confident Farley can continue the momentum.

"I think the change right now is good," Seavitt said. "It was time to go in a different direction."