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COVER STORY :: IT Transformation 32 F RD REVS UP How a global IT renew is provokeing the automakers turnaround B Y S T E P H A N I E OV E R B Y optionsâ€"an engine promising 30 percent better fuel economy, a touch-screen multimedia system, intelligent four-wheel drive, invehicle Wi-Fi and in?atable backside belts. But whats missing may make all(prenominal) the difference to the automakers survival. Two years ago, a shopper could purchase cut throughs fullsize SUV in both integrity of 76,000 con?gurations. This year, Ford will offer just 1,500. Its not exactly Model T simplicity. (Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black, fall flat Henry Ford once wrote of the Tin Lizzie.) But it is a step back to basics for the 107-year-old company andâ€"according to its fourth-year leadershipâ€"the key to its future. When CEO Alan Mulally took over Ford in the midst of a turnaround four years ago, he brought a singular focus to its Dearborn, Mich., headquarters: creating one Ford worldwide. For a company in which separately brand, each region, each rail line unit ran indeL E F T P H OTO B Y I S TO C K P H OTO ; R I G H T P H OTO B Y R OY R I TC H I E When Ford unveiled its re-engineered Explorer in July, the buzz cerebrate on its new SEPTEMBER 15, 2010 | www.cio.com SEP15 FEA.

indd 32 8/29/10 3:07:30 PM P H OTO B Y R OY R I TC H I E D L E F T P H OTO B Y I S TO C K P H OTO ; R I G H T P H OTO B Y R OY R I TC H I E 33 Group VP and CIO cut Smither has assigned senior IT leaders to Fords business units, where they contribute to product development and other global initiatives. P H OTO B Y R OY R I TC H I E www.cio.com | SEPTEMBER 15, 2010 SEP15 FEA.indd 33 8/29/10 3:01:12 PM COVER STORY :: IT Transformation 34 pendently for decades, Mulallys One Ford plan is an extreme makeover. Even more than challenging, the company has had to retool itself amid an auto industry depression and a broad economic meltdown. All the car... If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Orderessay

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