Few companies have innovated and thrived for more than 120 years. For Bill Ford, great-grandson of Henry Ford and executive chair of Ford Motor Company, the ongoing success of the iconic automaker has been his life’s work. In his 25 years as chair, Bill has led Ford with vision and values, helping the automaker stay ahead of the curve and navigate periods of uncertainty and change.

Bill joined Ford in 1979 as a product planning analyst and deliberately pursued roles across manufacturing, sales, marketing, product development, and finance. In 1982, he served on the National Bargaining Team during the Ford-UAW labor talks. By 1987, he was elected chair and managing director of Ford Switzerland and a year later, joined the company’s board of directors.

As head of strategy for the Ford Automotive Group in 1990, Bill helped establish guidelines for low-volume manufacturing plants in emerging markets. In 1992, as general manager of the Climate Control Division, he increased profits and improved quality. In 1994, he led the Commercial Truck Vehicle Center and a year later, joined the board of directors’ Finance Committee. Bill served as CEO from 2001 to 2006, when he was named executive chair. During the late 2000s, he managed the company through the financial crisis without a government bailout or seeking bankruptcy protection.

Through more than four decades at Ford, Bill promoted innovation at every opportunity and advanced global sustainability initiatives. Under his leadership, Ford in 1999 became the first automaker to publish a sustainability report. Soon after, Bill led redevelopment of the historic Ford Rouge Complex into one of the world’s greenest automotive assembly plants and championed the Escape Hybrid, the world’s first hybrid-electric SUV. In 2011, he gave a visionary TED Talk anticipating disruptive change coming to the industry and called upon Ford and other leaders to strive for technology-driven solutions for safety, congestion, and sustainability. This vision came full circle this year, when Ford reopened Michigan Central Station as the centerpiece of a new innovation district focused on the future of mobility.

Bill has always believed that the purpose of any company is to improve people’s lives. He launched the Ford Volunteer Corps to enhance employee volunteerism and championed philanthropic programs to support communities around the world. He steered the company through COVID, pivoting manufacturing resources to create ventilators and life-saving PPE.

Bill’s leadership demonstrates that corporate responsibility and business success can go hand-in-hand.