Mark Fields seen as successor to Ford CEO Alan Mulally

Is there a change afoot in the management of Ford Motor Co.?

Both Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal are reporting that Ford’s board of directors will meet this week to discuss a formal succession plan to replace Chief Executive Alan Mulally and that Mark Fields, the head of its North and South American operations, is the likely candidate.

Mulally, 67, is a former aerospace executive from Boeing who is widely credited with steering Ford through the recession without the need of a government bailout or bankruptcy reorganization.

Both news outlets cited unidentified sources who they claimed were familiar with Ford’s plans. Who might succeed Mulally has been a source of speculation for several years.

Fields, 51, is an industry veteran who also has worked for Ford’s former partner, Mazda, and the Jaguar and Land Rover brands when they were owned by the automaker.

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