Michigan Assembly (Bronco) Plant Manager Out as of Thursday July 14

[kirnma]

Think of the ungodly pressure this guy's been under since 2020 to deliver, and there's probably not one person on this forum that will say Ford has been successful with the Bronco launch. We really don't know what happened, but maybe he just burned out.

Sponsored

 

[Silver-Bolt]

Amazing all the "assumptions" that the man was fired and many cheering it on. You don't know squat. Maybe he took another job, people do that all the time. Maybe he wanted to make a career change, people do that. Maybe he or a family member had a health issue, happens. I walk into the Dr's office 34 years ago and came out with a cancer diagnosis, changed my life and employment forever. Quit railing on the man and making false assumptions because you don't know.

Exactly my point!

 

[Seatmandan]

Someone contact him and get to the bottom of the valve explosions

So ask a guy who worked in Michigan about an engine that was built in Ohio?

 

[Overboost]

Maybe he got caught in the back of someones Bronco, on dirt mountain, doing “product evaluations” with the secretary.

Have to relieve all that stress somehow!

5 pages and no one wanted to speculate on this theory…disappointed in you guys!

 

[tn3sport]

IMHO, I wouldn't be too worried about this announcement.
Plant Managers are essentially in charge of "operations". They manage everything within their walls.
Not Procurement or supplier negotiations, not design, not development, not marketing, and not transportation, All that is run by the "front" office of Ford.

Plant Mgr is a high stress job and the tenure for most is very short due to burn-out. Corp knows this and Ford has been around long enough to have a short list of replacements ready to go for every job in their business. I worked for a high-tech firm with global ops all over the world. We would get just a few years out of a good plant or operations manager before they split for something else....

 

[Dads_bronze_bronco]

I suspect that Williams’ departure, whether voluntary (i.e., to pursue a new &/or better opportunity) or involuntary (i.e., pushed out or terminated), is directly related to the corporate reorganization and Galhotra’s new management team and organization within Ford Blue.

When you are high up, and they replace the person over you, it’s time to explore your options quickly. Especially when things need improving, because you’re likely moving out anyway.

Best guess: since Ford hasn’t announced an immediate replacement, he found his next opportunity or decided to leave and take a break before the next opportunity.

 

[Joconn73]

Wonder if this has anything to do with anything?

https://www.freep.com/story/money/c...mbly-plant-manager-erik-williams/10067519002/

Michigan Assembly Plant manager who oversees Bronco, Ranger no longer with Ford

Michigan Assembly Plant manager Erik Williams, who has overseen the production of the bestselling Ford Bronco and Ford Ranger mid-size pickup truck, left that role Thursday, the Free Press has learned.

Ford spokesman Said Deep declined to discuss why Williams left.

“We do not comment on individual personnel matters. However, we can confirm he is no longer with the company," Deep told the Free Press on Friday. Ford also hasn’t yet named a replacement for Williams, who has been employed by Ford since 2004.

At Ford it’s always been quantity over quality

 

[North7]

And now, as Paul Harvey use to say "the rest of the story".

Ford hires new executive "Quality Czar" Josh Halliburton

 

[JohnnyBronco]

You all are looking from your perspective. From the manufacturing leader's perspective, this may look like a success, orchestrating significant supply line issues to get out as much product as he has. Some manufacturers are struggling more than Ford by a long shot.
It might have been that he got a better offer from somewhere else that wants a similar turnaround.

It's just that usually when a top person moves to another company there is a big announcement from where he went. Even when Holzhauzen, the designer of Solstice/Sky left GM for Mazda he received public best wishes from GM.

And maybe it's all personal or health, which is usually alluded to but not.

Seriously, though, like Ford has done in the past that I mentioned (Iacocca. Lutz) it is never related to that person's success but that someone under them that screwed the pooch is somehow more valuable in the eyes of upper management

 

[Murph914]

Probably just got tired of Ford’s foolishness and got a better job or retired. Can’t blame him. That or he got fired for banging a secretary.

 

[Dads_bronze_bronco]

Rumor control based on rumors-The guy was doing something stupid without going into details and got canned because of that. Nothing related to other changes going with Ford.

Then there is stupid stuff too … that’ll get you out the door without a named replacement.

However, those are the kind of “maybe this happened” rumors that flow in a vacuum when no one knows why.

 

[SoK66]

As a Ford Motor retiree who has seen this movie before: "Let the games begin!"

Somewhere along the way, when confronted with a multitude of challenges success comes down to individuals breaking out of their restraints and taking charge. This can either lead to actual success and a cultural pardiagm shift, or someone getting their @$$ fired. There ain't a force on Earth that can change the Ford business culture.

 

[steve_percy]

You all are looking from your perspective. From the manufacturing leader's perspective, this may look like a success, orchestrating significant supply line issues to get out as much product as he has. Some manufacturers are struggling more than Ford by a long shot.
It might have been that he got a better offer from somewhere else that wants a similar turnaround.

My dealer told me FoMoCo and all dealerships are making more than even because nothing sells below MSRP and FoMoCo is paying neither customer nor dealer rebates. They all like things the way they are.

 

[Ohnoohnoooo]

.

• Ford Announces Hiring of Dave Bozeman, formerly of Amazon, Caterpillar, & Harley Davidson (Business Wire, 7/14/22)
  • Bozeman will start with the company 9/1/22 as VP of the global Ford Customer Service Division and the Enthusiast Vehicles product line in Ford Blue.
  • He was also elected a corporate officer by Ford’s board of directors.
  • “As the head of FCSD, Bozeman will play a key role in delivering industry-leading customer-service experiences by further developing trust, loyalty and always-on customer relationships – all of which are central to the Ford+ plan for growth and value creation. He and his team will be responsible for global parts, accessories and vehicle personalization; material planning and logistics for FCSD; and best-in-class customer service experiences.”
  • “Bozeman will also head the Ford Blue enthusiast brands in the United States, including Bronco, Mustang and Raptor. With the assignment, Ford Blue now has operational leaders for each of its key vehicle segments: trucks (Andrew Frick), family (Kiersten Robinson) and enthusiast. Bozeman will report to Galhotra.”
  • “We are thrilled to welcome Dave to our Ford leadership team,” Galhotra said. “He has a unique skillset and a track record of success at some of the most respected and iconic companies in the world.”
  • Bozeman was most recently vice president of Amazon Transportation Services, overseeing all aspects of middle-mile transportation that enabled delivery of customer orders via the fastest and most convenient modes across the company’s global operations. Prior to Amazon, he was a senior vice president and head of the Caterpillar Enterprise System Group, the order-to-delivery organization aligned with Caterpillar’s critical processes and support groups to improve manufacturing and supply chain capabilities worldwide. Earlier, Bozeman held senior leadership positions at Harley-Davidson, the storied American motorcycle manufacturer..

really really wish they had mentioned consumer relations with the Bozeman hire. He’s allllll B2B. As long as dealers are the customers, I have no faith the end consumers (the actual enthusiasts) will be taken care of.

 

[Robaby411]

Exactly my point!

I work there. He definitely got fired. Walked out after 24 years. He started on the line and worked his way up. This is a wake up call for all of us who work at MAP. If the Plant Manager can get walked out, anyone can. This is a message that I'm sure corporate wanted to make very clear, which is why they handled his termination in this manner

Sponsored