Ford board of directors to pressure CEO Alan Mulally for answers on Microsoft job

[Shawn Knight]

Ford’s board of directors are planning to press CEO Alan Mulally as to his decision on his future at the company amidst increasing speculation that he might be the frontrunner to take over duties for outgoing Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer.

The board is expected to meet in the Detroit area today and it is there that some members are expected to try and get some answers from Mulally. Despite the fact that he is a board member, it is unclear if he will be in attendance. If not, the board members will reportedly try again sometime next week.

The 68-year-old is among a handful of candidates still in the running for the top spot at Microsoft according to several sources familiar with the matter as reported by Reuters. As of early November, other candidates for the position include ex-Nokia chief Stephen Elop, head of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise group Satya Nadella and former Skype CEO Tony Bates.

Steve Ballmer was named CEO of Microsoft back in 2000, taking over for Bill Gates. He announced intentions to retire this past August, saying he would only do so once a successor had been named. At last check, Microsoft is expected to take at least a few more months to narrow down the top candidates although with pressure mounting from the Ford board, a decision could come down sooner rather than later – granted Mulally is Microsoft’s man.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/54990-ford-board-of-directors-to-pressure-ceo-alan-mulally-for-answers-on-microsoft-job.html

 

[p51d007]

They really should be questioning him on the utterly ugly "new" Mustang they just announced.

 

[cliffordcooley]

The man is 68, he should be happy where he is. I could understand picking him, if he was 15 years younger.

 

[Wagan8r]

I just don't see anything positive about picking Mulally for the job. He has no experience in the tech sector, and at his age, Microsoft would be lucky to have him for five years. I don't think that's the kind of tenure that they want.

 

[treeski]

I just don't see anything positive about picking Mulally for the job. He has no experience in the tech sector, and at his age, Microsoft would be lucky to have him for five years. I don't think that's the kind of tenure that they want.

There were some rumors that they'd pick a short-term candidate until some in-house person is "ready".

 

[captainawesome]

I think the big issue is picking someone they know so well. Why limit the group to the close interactions like skype and nokia and ford (touch). They should get fresh leadership who can improve things like time to release and dev speed, cross platform integration etc.

 

[p51d007]

What you don't understand, is a lot of these companies, are like the upper crust in the political arena...they only pick within their limited circle. If a company REALLY wants a new direction, they would hire from outside of their comfort zone. Hiring Mulally would still be in their comfort zone.