Ford EV and tech chief leaving automaker

Doug Field, the high-profile executive who shaped Ford’s electric vehicle (EV) and technology strategies over the past five years, is leaving the automaker. Field’s departure was announced Wednesday as part of a broader reorganization of the company’s leadership.

Field joined Ford in 2021 with a robust resume from Silicon Valley that included leading Apple’s special projects team and serving as senior vice president of engineering at Tesla. His hiring was more than just a return to his professional roots. (Field began his career at Ford as a development engineer from 1987 to 1993.) The hiring was meant to drive Ford CEO Jim Farley’s vision to turn the legacy automaker into a leader in software, EVs, and other advanced technology.

Field directly reported to Farley, tasked initially with overseeing the company’s embedded software and hardware operations, covering vehicle controls, enterprise connectivity, features, integration and validation, architecture and platform, driver assistance technology, and digital engineering tools. In practice, this made him responsible for the design, development, and implementation of the entire tech stack used in Ford and Lincoln vehicles, including infotainment, navigation, driver-assist technology, connected services, and vehicle cybersecurity.

Field was a visible figure at Ford whom Farley often praised on the company’s earnings calls. He was among the key leaders when the automaker split its business into three units: the EV and digital services division, the traditional internal combustion engine business, and the commercial vehicles unit. And he was behind Ford’s skunkworks program — a secretive internal team — to build a low-cost electric vehicle.

Under the reorganization laid out Wednesday, Ford has created what it calls a “product creation and industrialization” team to be led by COO Kumar Galhotra. Ford’s electric vehicle and design team, which Field led, will be folded into this new organization.

The new organization comes with ambitious targets, including an 8% adjusted profit margin for its Ford+ commercial business by 2029. The team will also oversee Ford’s plan to refresh 80% of its North American portfolio by volume and 70% of its global portfolio by 2029. This will include the Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform, a mid-sized pickup, and the next-generation F-150 and F-Series Super Duty trucks.

The UEV platform is what the Ford skunkworks program — now known as the Advanced Development Projects team — developed. Alan Clarke, a former Tesla executive who has led that skunkworks program, is now vice president of Advanced Development Projects.