Ford Motor Co. on Monday named a new chief digital and information and facts officer to assist lead the firm’s use of details, software and engineering.
Mike Amend, who most not long ago headed up on the internet small business for the property improvement retailer Lowe’s Corporations Inc., will lead the Dearborn automaker’s technology and software program platforms. That includes the areas of organization facts engineering, worldwide knowledge perception and analytics, and Ford Small business Alternatives, in accordance to a information launch.
Amend, 43, will report to CEO Jim Farley, who stated in a statement that Amend “provides dimension to our crew as we use technological know-how and application to transform our firm and transportation from the inside of-out.” Amend and his crew will perform closely with Hau Thai-Tang, Ford’s chief item system and functions officer, and Doug Industry, the previous Apple Inc. and Tesla Inc. govt who joined the automaker final 7 days as main superior technologies and embedded programs officer.

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As it aims to reposition itself for a upcoming defined by electrification and technologically advanced cars, Ford has been introducing coverage and technologies knowledge to its senior management group. Using the services of Discipline away from Apple was touted as a big coup for the automaker.
Software program, information and technological innovation are central to Farley’s turnaround program, which seems to be to leverage electrification, industrial autos and electronic connectivity to make new, recurring revenue streams.
Amend served as president of on the internet organization at Lowe’s for the very last a few many years. In announcing his employing, Ford touted the in the vicinity of-tripling of on the internet product sales at Lowe’s underneath his leadership.
Prior to that, Amend held comparable positions JCPenney and The Property Depot Inc. He previously served as chief know-how officer for Dell Systems Inc.’s global on the internet company and, ahead of that, as a technologies government at BEA Techniques Inc. and Dash Corp.
Amend has a bachelor’s diploma in management information and facts providers from Oklahoma Condition University and has done the executive plan at Haas College of Enterprise at the College of California, Berkeley.
In his function at Ford, Amend will be tasked with acquiring application remedies to satisfy purchaser demands and assist drive progress. The position experienced been crammed in an interim capacity due to the fact early this year by Sakis Kitsopanidis, who will support in the transition whilst continuing as Ford’s director of built-in organization source organizing.
Kitsopanidis experienced taken over from Jeff Lemmer, who retired at the finish of last yr. Vijay Sankaran, a former TD Ameritrade main information officer, in November was announced as Ford’s new chief application and data officer, but he backed out shortly after, citing personalized motives. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has considering that taken around as main know-how officer for Johnson Controls.
Meanwhile, “I’m thrilled to join Ford at these a pivotal time in the business and the market,” Amend explained in a assertion Monday. “We’re entirely reimagining electronic experiences for our customers, colleagues, sellers and companions, and will use technological know-how and actual-time info to deliver that eyesight to lifetime.”
Twitter: @JGrzelewski