Ford hires top strategist to President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama[Detroit Free Press]— 3:55 PM ET 06/02/2021
Ford goes "woke" with Obama insider, another American company bites the freakin dust
Ford Motor Co. ( F) has hired Caroline Adler Morales from the office of the Obamas, where she has worked as communications director for Michelle Obama and strategic communications adviser for President Obama.
Morales, 38, has a long history of working in politics and was instrumental in several of Michelle Obama’s signature initiatives. Morales was also a senior member of former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s communications team for four years at the State Department.
Morales helped lead communications as the Obamas built their post-presidency strategy, managing and supporting initiatives including the start of Higher Ground Productions, book launches and global tours, podcasts, and the recent launch of the “Waffles + Mochi” Netflix ( NFLX) series.
Global impact
She was part of the small team that coordinated the "Becoming" book tour for Michelle Obama that led to sales of 16 million units worldwide — print editions, e-books and audio books. It was one of many successful projects involving Morales. She also worked with Michelle Obama to begin her education work (the Girls Opportunity Alliance), her podcast released by Spotify ( SPOT), and ongoing initiatives related to voting and education.
Morales is stepping into a new position as director of stakeholder advocacy at Ford beginning July 12.
"In this role, she will be responsible for bringing our purpose to life through great initiatives and creative communications, helping us become far more intentional about showing our values to the world," Mark Truby, Ford chief communications officer, emailed his communications team in an internal memo on Wednesday.
Morales will also support communications for executive chairman Bill Ford and work with Angie Kozleski to transition into those responsibilities through the summer as Kozleski moves on to become director of North America Products and Services.
Navigating social issues
The internal memo introducing Morales said she will help build Ford's reputation in the areas of sustainability, electrification, corporate giving, employer of choice and new audiences (women, African-American, Hispanic, Asian). Morales "will partner closely with Government Relations, Marketing, Ford Fund" and others "to create innovative campaigns and approaches to finding Ford’s place in the cultural conversation, building advocacy and arming others to help the company tell its story. She also will help us navigate the many social issues that large companies face today."
Truby, who hired Morales and will be her boss, told the Free Press, "I knew Caroline by reputation. I'm a big admirer of the work she'd done with the First Lady and the Obamas. It was creative and innovative."
Morales will remain based in Washington at the Ford government affairs office and spend time in Dearborn as needed. This is part of a reorganization of the company and communications operations.
"We want to be a company that is not only known for products and services but we want our corporate character to shine through," Truby said.
"You want to be part of the cultural conversation. We want to build advocacy — like when you think of Patagonia, Disney ( DIS) and even Tesla. They're very intentional about helping others tell their story and about building fandom and support, whether in the environmental community or people who just love Broncos or Mustangs or F-150s," Truby said.
"We have the potential as a brand to have even more love and support and advocacy from the public than what we do. But we have to be intentional about it. At the highest level, Caroline will be working on those types of strategies — from corporate giving to ESG — environmental, social and governance priorities."
Morales told the Free Press during an interview on Wednesday that she met Ford, CEO Jim Farley and Truby.
"Truly mission- and principal-driven is important to me, coming from the White House and the Obama personal office," Morales said. "To find those values reflected in such a core way at an iconic company like this is a rare treasure."
She noted a focus on the humanity of the 118-year-old company.
"I’m so thrilled to be joining the Ford family," Morales said. "It is an iconic American brand. Its entire history is intertwined with the country’s history. Everyone has a Ford story. Even I have a Ford story."
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