William Clay Ford is the youngest of the four grandchildren of Henry Ford and child of Edsel Ford.
He initially pursued a career with the Ford Motor Company and for awhile was the head of the Continental Division. A reorganization eliminated the division, and for some time he retreated from his company responsibilities, although he was at least in title responsible for oversight of company design activities.
He purchased the Detroit Lions and for some years this was his primary professional interest, but as his older brother Henry Ford II aged he became increasingly important as a Ford Motor Company director, representing the long term interests of the family investment (and by proxy, that of all shareholders). He was Chairman of the Finance Committee (an important board position traditionally held by a trusted non-executive director) for several years, eventually ceding that seat to his son, William Clay Ford Jr..
Henry Ford II Henry Ford II (September 4, 1917 — September 29, 1987), commonly known as "Hank the Deuce," was the son of Edsel Ford and grandson of Henry Ford.
Born in Detroit, Michigan, Henry Ford II was named president of Ford in 1945, Henry Ford II served in that capacity until November 9, 1960, when he resigned and became Chief Executive Officer of the company.
In 1988 the "Henry Ford II Distinguished Award for Excellence in Automotive Engineering" was established by the Society of Automotive Engineers as an annual honorarium "to honor Henry Ford II and to recognize his enormous impact on the mobility industry".
The youngest, WilliamClayFord Sr., was born in 1925.
Ford became a director in 1988 and took on his first major post as chairman of the finance committee in 1995.
Ford knew he faced a gargantuan challenge in competing with Japan, for Toyota and Honda were already several years ahead in hybrid car technology (cars that combined electric batteries with an internal combustion engine).
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