John Lawler on industry transformation
From Ford’s John Lawler on EV Disruption, China, and What’s Next | BofA Auto Summit 2025 · · Corporate Talks
“We have to think about the industry differently we have to think about joint ventures we have to think about partnerships maybe there'll be consolidation but if something doesn't change all of us can't do all of this on our own especially with what has been one of the largest profit pools and cash generators in this industry over the last 10 to 12 years drying up.”
On , John Lawler, Vice President & Chief Financial Officer at Ford Motor Co, spoke about industry transformation during Ford’s John Lawler on EV Disruption, China, and What’s Next | BofA Auto Summit 2025 on Corporate Talks.
About John Lawler
John Lawler, Vice Chair and former CFO of Ford Motor Company, has been discussing the company's strategy amid significant industry shifts. He described the automotive industry's historical performance as having "terrible" multiples, "atrocious" capital efficiency, and "off the charts" cyclicality. Lawler stated that Ford is focusing on connected vehicle services as a way to create higher-margin, more capital-efficient revenue streams and reduce cyclicality. He also noted that the company is allocating 40 to 50% of free cash flow to invest in the business, citing the "tectonic shifts" in the industry and the need for partnerships or consolidation, as "no OEM can do all of that on their own." Lawler has characterized Chinese automakers as a "force to reckon with" and a "significant threat," stating that they will eventually come to the U.S. market. He said Ford is working on a low-cost, advanced EV architecture through a "skunk works" team to compete. Regarding Ford's own EV business, Lawler acknowledged it is "experiencing losses" but said the company is focused on bringing it to profitability by designing future models to be "competitive with the lowest cost players globally." He stated that Ford will not launch second-generation vehicles unless they are profitable. Lawler also highlighted the success of Ford's hybrid vehicles, calling them "a great success for us," and noted that Ford Pro, the commercial business, has shown strong growth, with revenue up 5% in its tenth consecutive quarter of growth.