SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Ford Motor Co.'s top financial executive will retire next month, handing the struggling automotive giant's books over to the man who helped bring profitability to Ford's European operations, the company announced Friday.
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Don Leclair, culminating 32 years with the Dearborn, Mich.-based company (F:
Ford Motor Company
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4:00pm 10/10/2008
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F 1.99, -0.09, -4.3%) , said he's stepping down as chief financial officer to spend more time with his family and pursue other interests.
His departure comes at a critical time, with the auto industry battered by plunging sales, frozen credit markets and historically low stock prices.
Leclair was seen as instrumental in Ford's surprise move to essentially mortgage all of its assets for billions of dollars back in 2006 to fund its overhaul before the credit crisis took hold.
"Don's expertise and business acumen have been invaluable to Ford," said Chief Executive Alan Mulally in a statement. "Under his leadership, Ford has made significant progress in lowering costs, improving quality, improving efficiency, divesting non-core assets, improving our balance sheet and moving us to our One Ford."
Lewis Booth, who leads Ford of Europe, has been with the company for nearly the same amount of time as Leclair, holding various positions all around the word, including a stint atop the Premier Automotive Group before the Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin line were all sold.
"Lewis' global experience, track record and many years of leadership in Ford's finance operations make him the ideal CFO," Mulally said. "He has proven success integrating Ford of Europe into a profitable, lean and highly efficient operation."
John Fleming will take over for Booth as the top executive at Ford of Europe. He had been named as president and CEO of the division back in 2005.
Ford's stock finished an extremely volatile session down 4.3% at $1.99. The shares are now down about 70% so far this year. End of Story