Ford’s group vice president for global product development, Derrick Kuzak, was officially selected as a recipient of the 2010 National Academy of Engineering (NAE) award, the highest honor and most prestigious award in the engineering community.
“Derrick is a precise, methodical engineer and a phenomenal product development leader,” said Ford president and CEO Alan Mulally. “He has the unique ability to inspire and motivate his team to new heights of innovation and efficiency. Derrick has played a key role in our ONE Ford plan to quickly develop and deliver the products our customers want and value.”
Kuzak has overall responsibility for all aspects of the company’s product development globally. In this role, he leads a team responsible for efficient development and delivery of Ford’s product portfolio around the world.
“I am humbled and honored to be included among such an outstanding group of engineers who have contributed so much to our lives and our profession,” said Kuzak.
Appointed to his current global post in 2006, Kuzak previously served as vice president, North America Engineering, where he held responsibility for engineering signoff of all North American vehicles and had direct responsibility for key commodity and common-platform components.
From 2000 through 2005, Kuzak held key product development leadership positions for Ford of Europe, heading the design and engineering of vehicles that accounted for a major portion of the European light-vehicle market.
Born in 1951, Kuzak is a native of Detroit, Mich. He holds both B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Detroit, where he was also awarded a doctorate in Systems Engineering. He joined Ford as a research engineer in 1978.
Other NAE honorees employed at Ford include Mulally – a recipient while still at Boeing – and Davor Hrovat of Ford’s Research and Innovation Center.
Kuzak will be recognized in NAE ceremonies in Washington, D.C., in October.
