F Ford Motor Company

By Ben Foldy 

Ford Motor Co. has appointed Alexandra Ford English, daughter of executive chairman Bill Ford Jr., to fill the company's board seat at electric-car startup Rivian Automotive, signaling the rise of another young Ford within the company's ranks.

Ms. Ford English, who earlier this year took on the role of director of corporate strategy at Ford, will join Rivian's board effectively immediately, the two companies said Friday.

Rivian, founded a decade ago in suburban Detroit, has in recent years drawn interest within automotive circles for its futuristic-looking electric trucks and SUVs. Its vehicles use a so-called skateboard layout with a large battery, capable of giving them a travel range of about 400 miles on a single charge.

The electric models will be aimed at outdoors-minded customers and have off-roading capability, the company has said.

Ford acquired a seat on Rivian's board as part of an initial $500 million investment in the Plymouth, Mich.-based electric-truck maker in April 2019. Ford has since increased its equity investment in Rivian as part of a $1.3 billion funding round in December, although the exact figure hasn't been publicly disclosed.

Joe Hinrichs, the company's former president of automotive, had previously held Ford's board seat at Rivian. He retired earlier this year.

Ms. Ford English joined her family's company in 2017 after working in fashion retail, including in the merchandising divisions at Tory Burch and Gap Inc. She has since worked for the company's autonomous-vehicle and mobility teams and joined corporate strategy in March.

The Ford family, which maintains effective control of the company through ownership of a special Class B supervoting stock, has a long history of members taking roles at the company, including top leadership positions.

Mr. Ford, the executive chairman and himself the great-grandson of founder Henry Ford, has said shareholders benefit from his family's involvement and he see it as his role to ensure relatives participate in the company's operations.

Ford plans to use Rivian's electric-truck technology to help develop new battery-powered vehicles for its own lineup as part of a multibillion-dollar push to reduce its reliance on the gasoline engine.

Rivian, which has also drawn investment from automotive and tech heavyweights such as Amazon.com and Cox Enterprises, had planned to deliver its first R1T pickup trucks in late 2020.

Ford and Rivian's plans, however, have been significantly affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Last month, Rivian said it was going to delay the launch of the R1T pickup truck because of complications related to the new coronavirus, declining to specify a new timeline. Ford, this week, canceled plans for a Lincoln-branded vehicle that would have used Rivian technology.

"Alexandra and I share a deep passion for mobility and electrification, and her connection to Ford's long family role in transportation is something special," said RJ Scaringe, Rivian's founder and chief executive.

Write to Ben Foldy at Ben.Foldy@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 01, 2020 11:50 ET (15:50 GMT)

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