I know Ford su-ks and working here su-ks, but you won't have it much better elsewhere. I came to Ford from GM thinking I was doing myself a favor. I ended up with the exact same problems and the exact same toxic work environment as in my old job. Unless you're planning to change the industry, I'm afraid this is it.
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Yes, it is well known that employees float between the companies and there is culture seep. It is also well known in Metro Detroit that if you want a paycheck for life for minimal/no effort, Ford is the place to be. Other industries in Metro Detroit shuffle the job applicants who are working for the big 3 to the bottom of the pile, especially those who have stayed at the big three for a considerable amount of time.
Do yourself a favor and move to a different industry while you still can. But do your research first. There are toxic cultures in other large companies as well. I.e. GE isn’t all that healthy. Many Ford people jumped to GE and then claimed oh everyplace is toxic. LOL
Some warning signs, the more a company brags about its culture the worse it is. If the office is wallpapered with culture and values posters, you can be sure those aren’t the actual culture and values of the company. Similarly a large volume of Press releases and websites expounding on the values and culture (I.e. DEI), and for sure those are not the practiced corporate values and culture. It’s rather like truly wealthy person does tell everyone they are wealthy. Or a truly kind person doesn’t tell everyone they are kind. But everyone knows they are.
Ford is a toxic workplace riddled with political behaviors all about individuals trying to gain influence and power without caring about the consequences for their coworkers.
The attrition rate for contributors is thru the roof, when you add in the apathetic quiet quitters you realize why Ford is constantly hiring and constantly claiming they don’t have the right employees.
For sure Farley has to go - mega flop. The problem isn’t the bench isn’t any better. DF is another mega flop.
Now when you say Ford is full of old white men, you're not wrong. If you think DEI is ruining the company ill see you complacency, laziness, and raise you a boys club of sub-par engineers who has that covered.
DEI however IS bullsh-t the way its shoved at everyone and its implementation isn't going to save anyone or help the ones its intended to help. Political initiatives like this always are ham fisted government attempts to appease and end up hurting business in the process.
Want some real change? Instead of a made up bullsh-t position like DEI C level officer just start replacing half the executives with non white / non-indian quality candidates. Will quality issues improve? Well if they did would that mean it was related to DEI or just breaking up a network / cycle of favors? Anyone's guess.
You cant say that around here.
Most of Ford are old white men. The word 'ethnicities' makes them want to run and lock their doors.
Farley said that Ford was far behind our competition regarding DEI. So he is working to fix that. Everyone here feels threatened by that. Even though DEI never hurts the majority.
I hope you enjoy your time at FoMoCo!
I enjoyed working at Ford much more than I did at the GM tech ctr personally. Ford tends to treat people of different ethnicities better than GM does by a long shot, which was a big plus for me.
I guess you can sue wherever you work as a counter...
I find the OP's story about coming from GM to Ford funny.
Now obviously, my anecdote is nearly a decade old, so take it FWIW.
That being said, back then, I working as a contractor at GM and they had a ton of people flooding in from both Ford and Chrysler who were complaining about the toxic environments at both places.
With Stellantis, it was the crazy amount of turnover and all of their program launches being a mess with quality problems (yes, even with nothing but legacy platforms). With Ford, it was the micromanagement and relatively worse bonuses/benefits.
When the same problems follow you around, chances are, you are the problem.
Ever see Office Space? Ever read Dilbert? It’s the same all over.
If leaving the industry isn't an option for you, you need to be more creative or watch your career die on the vine. So not see leaving the industry as an option is likely one of the reasons one might be in the situation they are in. Learn to diversify your skills and apply them elsewhere. Evolve or don't.
It's not a day that goes by that someone isn't blaming world problems on "DEI". Say DEI three times in the dark and a black woman will come and steal your job and make sure you end up on the street begging for money.
Using keywords to disguise your hatred in a more acceptable way is pathetic.
Don't work for the big 3. There are better companies out there to work for.
@iny+1pAxZBmC Leaving the industry will not solve the problem. I've been around before coming to Ford, and I've seen many issues out there that plague Ford. Do you think that the Friends and Family club is only Ford's? It is bigger at Ford, but exists in every company I worked for. Do you think incompetent managers, silos, political games, etc. are unique to Ford? Think again.
There are 2 main things that I've not seen before. One is having such du----s CEOs (twice in a row!). At least in other companies, CEOs are smart enough to keep their mouths shut in public, not showing their ignorance. The second thing is DEI, but that's because I started at Ford before that was a big thing. Yes, I saw in other companies before Ford, that there was a push to promote women into management, and there were women quotes in hiring. Managers in technical groups dominated by men were hard pressed to hire women instead. All those companies are probably going through the same wokeness and DEI sh-t, or worse.
Here is the thing: large enterprises copy each other policies. A friend in another company went through the same open space floor concept, self serve cafeteria and "hot desk" (no assigned desk) concept, before Ford implemented those. At one point was the Six Sigma methodology, then LEAN, then was Agile, and it seems the company is moving to LEAN manufacturing. At any point in time, all the large companies are doing the same thing, because executives in big companies are largely ignorant, and they are trying to justify their huge salaries. Let's say that not everyday there is a Henry Ford that revolutionize an industry, and when it happens, everybody else copy what the guy did.
Sorry for the long tirade. My point is that moving to another company will not solve the many big issues having at Ford. Does that mean that is ok to stay at Ford? No. Leaving the company will remove the permanent threat of layoffs, and maybe for a while, give that ex-Ford employee a better job satisfaction. Call me pessimist, but it is really hard to find a good place to work, and when it happens, it doesn't last long. That's life for most of us!
So leave the industry? Problem solved