Ford CEO surprises everyone by retiring after just three years

Most dramatically, Hackett cancelled most of Ford's car lineup in the US so the company can focus on its more profitable trucks and SUVs. Ford then announced plans for $11 billion in new investments in electric and hybrid vehicles—even as it laid off almost 20 percent of its European workforce."We made some significant decisions in the earliest days that were quite controversial," Hackett said on a Tuesday conference call. The company also brought back the Bronco after a 24-year hiatus—though the Bronco was conspicuous for not having a hybrid or battery electric option.Hackett took over Ford shortly after the car company made a billion-dollar bet on the self-driving startup Argo, and there have been no big changes in Ford's self-driving strategy since then. There are also plans for Ford to build some of its vehicles on top of Volkswagen's electric vehicle platform.So Hackett has made significant investments in electrification and self-driving technologies, but he hasn't exactly bet the company on these shifts. Hackett said Tuesday that he's been dazzled with how Farley has managed the COVID crisis."A company like Ford has so much fixed cost, that when you turn those off, there's almost no way to avoid the kind of losses we were likely to face," Hackett said.