Magazine names Ford's Alan Mulally top CEO

Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally has been named CEO of the Year by Chief Executive magazine.

What set Mulally apart, according to the selection committee, was not only leading the turnaround of an American icon without the government bailout funds given to its competitors, but also a mix of other behaviors and accomplishments. Last year, Ford made $6.6 billion, compared with a loss in 2009.

The magazine's 11-point criteria list:

-- Courage

-- Leadership

-- Vision

-- Demonstrable impact on company, industry and business

-- External benchmarks

-- Innovativeness

-- Moral dimension, personal character

-- CEO respect/reputation

-- Degree of difficulty

-- Sustained performance

-- Employee engagement, leadership development and people processes

The magazine says Mulally still has much to deal with at Ford, starting with its weakness in the growing Asian market. Ford currently holds just 2.7 percent of that market.

Mulally also needs to take a long look at Lincoln and decide whether the brand still has merit, the magazine says. Mulally did preside over the shutdown of the Mercury brand.

One area that hasn't been a problem for Mulally is innovation. Mulally oversaw the beginnings of Ford's Sync system, MyFord Touch and the connected new Focus. At the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show, Mulally said, "We could have acted like a car company, introduced an outstanding new electric vehicle and call it a day. But we're more than a car company, we're a technology company."

In September, Mulally will mark five years as Ford CEO.

By Jake Lingeman