William Clay Ford, Jr.

William Clay (Bill) Ford Jr. (born May 3, 1957) is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company.

Notable acts and events

Bill generated a name for himself when he was serving only as Chairman and not CEO. On February 1, 1999 when the Ford Rouge Powerhouse had an explosion that killed several Ford employees, Bill Ford rejected the ideas of his advisors and rushed to the scene from Ford World Headquarters. One of his staff cautioned, "Generals don't go out to the front lines." Ford's retort: "Then bust me down to private." Ford stopped and gave a heart-breaking account of the explosion to roadside television crews.

Related Topics:
February 1 - 1999

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In both 2004 and 2005 Ford has announced contribution of his performance-based stock bonuses to scholarship funds benefitting employees, and to charity.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

June 2005, he joined the Ebay board.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

According to news reports, Ford "is a tae kwon do blackbelt, a student of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism and a folk guitar player." (http://www.surferess.com/CEO/html/william_clay_ford_jr.html).

Related Topics:
Tae kwon do - Zen - Tibetan Buddhism - Folk - Guitar

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~