By Nora Eckert
April 15 (Reuters) - Doug Field, a Tesla and Apple veteran who has led Ford Motor's electric-vehicle and technology efforts for nearly five years, is leaving the automaker.
Ford said Wednesday
that Field, who most recently was the chief EV, digital, and design officer, is leaving Ford next month. Field said he looks forward to sharing what he’s learned in his career with others.
The century-old automaker hired Field in 2021 to oversee advanced technology efforts, and Ford CEO Jim Farley signaled that his arrival would help Ford rethink the way it approached developing modern cars, calling it a “watershed” moment for the company.
Detroit’s automakers have increasingly relied on Silicon Valley expertise to transform their cultures into more tech-forward organizations that move faster and entice customers with new features and updates, and hopefully generate subscriptions.
Since Field arrived at the automaker, policy changes and lower-than-anticipated demand for EVs have rapidly reshaped automakers’ product plans. Many of the programs Field worked on were canceled during his time at the company, including plans for several next-generation EVs, as well as an advanced electrical architecture that was engineered to serve as the “brain” of those vehicles.
“The whole journey here has not been about the products for me,” Field told reporters Wednesday. “The journey here has been about building the team, building the set of capabilities, helping build the culture.”
In December, Ford recorded a $19.5 billion writedown as it stepped away from several EV programs.
One of Field’s most lasting impacts at the company will likely be with Ford’s next generation family of affordable EVs, starting with a $30,000 pickup truck arriving next year. He, along with Tesla alum Alan Clarke, led the team’s efforts to produce vehicles in the U.S. that rival those made by Chinese automakers.
Clarke will now lead that team, Ford said, and has been named head of advanced development projects.
Farley credited Field with drawing tech talent to the automaker and for making cultural changes to reduce complexity and accelerate decision-making. “His influence will be felt for years to come,” Farley said in a statement.
Ford is combining the advanced technology team with the global industrialization team led by chief operating officer Kumar Galhotra. The automaker has for years tried to separate out its EV and gas-vehicle operations, the financials of which it reports separately, although many parts of those organizations have since been merged back together.
The automaker said combining these teams will help it attack the next few years of product, software and service launches, which it called one of the most intensive in the company’s history. Galhotra will lead the newly created group, which is called product creation and industrialization.
Ford said it will refresh 80% of its North American vehicle lineup by volume and 70% of its global portfolio by volume by 2029.
(Reporting by Nora Eckert in Detroit; Editing by Mike Colias and Chizu Nomiyama )
