William Clay Ford Jr.: Henry Ford's great-grandson has big plans for Ford and the Detroit Lions - Interview

Automotive Industries, Sept, 1998 by Marjorie Sorge

Henry Ford's great-grandson has big plans for Ford and the Detroit Lions.

William Clay Ford Jr. has a powerful heritage. As the great grandson of Henry Ford, his name is recognized in every corner of the world. But that's not what gets him up in the morning. Ford is an active environmentalist and community leader -- and he expects those who work for him to be the same. "I want Ford to be the leading corporate citizen in the world," he says. "The way we handle ourselves, portray ourselves and treat people is what is important."

Some speculate that, Bill, 41, will become the next chairman of Ford Motor Co. He already sits on the board of directors and splits his time between the automaker and another career passion, the Detroit Lions. He serves as trice chairman of the NFL franchise, which is owned by his father, and is working hard to get a new Lions' stadium up and running in Detroit by 2001.

Take a look at how he runs his football team and you'll have a pretty good idea of how Bill Ford would run Ford Motor Co. -- if he gets the top job.

On the Chairmanship

Q. Do you want to become chairman of Ford?

A. Yes, but if it doesn't work out that is OK too. This is not a traditional kind of horse race, where if I lose I am going to go away. I am going to be part of Ford until the day I die. For me it is less important what my rifle is. What is most important is the kind of impact I am going to have positively on the company. If the board feels that it is in a chairman's role or something else, then fine.

Q. Many people think the decision has already been made. Is that true?

A. No, it is not true.

Q. Is current Chairman Alex Trotman staying until January 2000, as he once said?

A. You need to ask Alex what his intentions are, but I think he has indicated that is what he would like to do.

Q. If you do become chairman, would you expect the CEO rifle, too?

A. I don't know. We are really not there in terms of discussion.

I know it sounds like a trite answer, but I grew up around power, prestige and money, so none of those things hold any fascination for me. What really turns me on are things like working on the environment to clean up vehicles and what Ford is doing in Mexico where we are building over 100 schools. I don't really care what my title is.

On the New Lions Stadium

Q: You are moving the Lions' stadium from Pontiac, Mich., to Detroit. What are your plans for it?

A: We want to make this the most distinctive domed stadium in the country. When we had our architectural shootout I gave them two parameters. First, I wanted a design that is not cold or sterile. Second, I wanted to be sum that if you blindfold some fans and put them on the 50-yard line, they'd know it is the home of the Lions and that they am in Detroit City. There is a glass wall in the south end zone that overlooks the skyline of Detroit.

We also started looking at ways to use environmentally-friendly materials. We are going to use recycled materials.

Q. How will you use these materials?

A. We could use them for seats, bathroom stalls and possibly railings. There are a number of things I just don't know about yet. We don't want to compromise the aesthetic beauty of the stadium, but our experience at Ford is that the environment and product quality go hand in hand.

Q. The Lions have had some problems with fan behavior at its current home, the Silverdome. How do you plan to curb that in the new stadium?

A. I've asked around the league about fan problems. Our stadium is probably one of the worst in terms of fan violence and fan behavior.

Last year I sat in the bleachers for two games to see what it was like. I found out that the majority of our fans are very well behaved. The part that bothered me the most was the language, especially for the kids.

Several things at the Silverdome hurt us. We don't control security or the concessions, so we can't cut people off if they've had too much to drink. We will keep the liquor license -- but if it gets out of hand, we will act on it in the new stadium.

Lessons From the Lions

Q. What have you brought to Ford from the Lions?

A. With the Lions you get instant feedback. One of the things we lose sight of on the rarefied 12th floor (Ford's executive suite) is the passion people have for cars. Being with the fans always brings back the passion. You can lose that at Ford if you are not out with customers all the time.

If I just hang around world headquarters, I won't hear the negative stuff about Ford Motor Co. I need to know what people like, and in particular, what they don't like. That's what I've brought back from the Lions -- the need to stay close to your customer.

Lessons From Ford

Q. Ford seems to get along rather well with its unions. You sat on Ford's bargaining team in 1982. What have you learned from Ford about labor relations that you use with the Lions?

A. You must communicate. You have to talk to people before problems become big problems. I don't just mean talking. I mean sharing information to lay out the situation. We are very frank with our players in terms of what we expect of them, how we want them to act in the community and what we are trying to do as an organization.