BearingPoint UK partner Sarah-Jayne Williams joins Ford
US multinational Ford has appointed Sarah-Jayne Williams as its first Director of Smart Mobility in Europe. Williams joins from BearingPoint, where she was a Partner in the firm's UK arm.
Global consultancy BearingPoint have spent the duration of 2017 looking to expand operations in Europe. Along with the addition of 19 new Partners to the firm’s European leadership in July, CEO Peter Mockler had confirmed earlier in the year that the organisation was targeting total revenues of £1 billion by 2020. However, while the company continues its growth path, it has experienced a small set back, as UK Partner Sarah-Jayne Williams has opted to join the Ford Motor Company.
Williams has been named as the automotive giant’s first Director of Smart Mobility in Europe as of August, being assigned to the new Ford Smart Mobility Innovation Office in London. She will report to Ford of Europe President and CEO, Steven Armstrong, and to John Larsen, Ford’s Vice President of Global Operations and Smart Mobility. As a director, Williams will have to take on a myriad of duties, including leading the global City Solutions team, working alongside European city planners, public transport agencies and communities to cater to the needs of the urban dwellers and cities. She will also direct Ford's investments in smart mobility, as the company invests into new transport initiatives, concentrating on the needs of the chief financial hubs in Europe.
“We’re delighted to welcome Sarah-Jayne to the Ford team in Europe. Her role is to tackle urban transportation challenges and opportunities, and respond to the growth of the sharing economy by defining and implementing Ford of Europe’s Smart Mobility strategy. She will focus on accelerating the launch of mobility services across Europe through collaboration, especially with cities, innovation and growing the existing team,” said Steven Armstrong.
Particularly important at this juncture will be the successful development of Ford’s new line of non-petrol/diesel exclusive vehicles. With the UK set to outlaw the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040, automotive manufacturers are investing heavily in developing a new generation of alternatively fuelled machines. A trial-run is set to take place later this year to validate the fleet of plug in hybrid electric (PHEV) Transit delivery vans in cooperation with Transport for London, and various other fleet partners who have expressed interest in the production which is scheduled for 2019, and could potentially be offering services such as ridesharing.
Prior to joining Ford, Williams served as a Partner with BearingPoint UK’s Automotive team, having risen to Director of the Connected Car Centre of Excellence at the firm. During her 14 year tenure at the consulting firm, Williams also gained popularity in publishing, after her work on connected cars, data privacy, digital customer behaviors, world class digital organisations, and co-authoring a book titled “Customer Paradoxes in a Digital World”.
Williams has also been affiliated with much glory, as she won the Management Consulting Association award for Marketing Consultant of the Year, in addition to being a proud member of the winning team with the Jaguar Land Rover for the 2015 Management Consulting Association Digital and Technology Project of the Year for Connected Car. Sarah-Jayne Williams graduated from the University of Bath with a bachelor in Modern Languages and a masters degree in Business Management.
Commenting on her new challenge, Williams said, "The auto industry is on the cusp of a revolution as great as that when Henry Ford first made the car accessible to the masses over 100 years ago. I’m looking forward to joining the Ford team and to being part of its adventure into the world of Smart Mobility.”
