“1. Ford lost its focus as an automaker.
Under Nasser, Ford did not define itself as an automaker. Instead Ford became a consumer company providing automotive goods and services.

The result: Ford began struggling in its core business of engineering, manufacturing and selling cars and trucks. Product quality slipped below GM and DaimlerChrysler. Product launches were botched.

“2. Nasser fell under the spell of the Internet.
In the late 1990s, the Internet bubble rose on the economic landscape, enticing companies with the lure of profits from e-businesses trading at huge price-earnings multiples. Nasser envisioned taking public various units of a newly created Ford e-commerce group, capitalizing on the phenomenal market value of Internet stocks and vaulting Ford into the Internet age.

The result: The strategy collapsed with the Internet economy. The fallout spilled over to Ford’s relations with a core constituency, its retailers. Dealers today still smart from Nasser’s experiments in e-retailing, viewing attempts to sell and service vehicles on the Internet as a threat to the franchised dealer network.


“3. Nasser attempted to go on his own too much.
Nasser tried to oversee personally too many aspects of running a global corporation.

The result: As many as 16 executives reported directly to the Ford CEO. Bent on single-handedly wielding power at the top, Nasser failed to create a strong operating executive to back up the CEO. Nasser’s micromanaging slowed decision-making and created a company in organizational limbo awaiting direction.


“4. Nasser neglected William Clay Ford Jr.
Nasser failed to develop a sensible working relationship with Bill Ford when the Ford scion became non-executive chairman in January 1999.

The result: The company had an uneasy balance of leadership. Nasser’s hands-on style failed to accommodate Bill Ford’s growing influence.

“5. Nasser underestimated Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. CEO John Lampe.
Nasser compounded the Firestone tire recall by underestimating Lampe, who refused to back down when Ford fingered 13 million additional Firestone tires as potentially faulty.

The result: Nasser and Lampe engaged in corporate mudslinging and finger-pointing before the press, Congress and the public. The spectacle of Firestone blaming the Ford Explorer and Ford blaming the tire maker for road deaths damaged the reputations of both companies. Meanwhile, the enormous amount of time that Nasser spent on the crisis left other important tasks undone.

“6. Nasser spent too much time on Premier Automotive Group.
As part of a lofty vision, Nasser acquired Volvo and Land Rover, hoping to leverage the big-name brands into a global luxury powerhouse under the Premier Automotive Group umbrella.

The result: Core brands such as Ford in North America stood in line for management time, talent and money. Nasser’s strategy made Ford more vulnerable in North America, the company’s chief source of profits.