Ford Motor Acceleration Tour
If it’s good enough for Pro-Track, it’s good enough for Ford Motors.
One of the guidelines for emerging speakers in this year’s NSA Pro-Track class was to establish a toehold on the “Animal Circuit” — speaking at neighborhood Lions and Kiwanis Clubs. They don’t pay squat, but they provide a newbie speaker with a ready audience to try material on.
So I was not surprised to read that 30 senior executives from troubled carmaker Ford Motor in Detroit will tour 100 cities across the US “making presentations to groups such as chambers of commerce, Rotary and Kiwanis clubs and city councils”. This grassroots effort aims to introduce audiences to new vehicles and stress that Ford quality is on a par with Asian rivals.
Ford’s communications team is not just sending the senior guys out armed with a PowerPoint and a smile. The presentations will include (“where practicable” ) a display of a new F-Series or Edge crossover vehicle. And, in a nod to audience demographics, executives will be paired with cities where they have a personal connection. Example: Jon Hinrichs, head of North American manufacturing, will speak in his hometown of Columbus, OH.
One can imagine the “local boy makes good” articles this will generate in small town papers.
Auto executives are taking Pro-Track advice to heart. The public speaking experience they’ll gain at Kiwanis and Lions Clubs will be a valuable addition to the manufacturing experience on their resumes should Ford continue to steer downhill.
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