Residence Birmingham, MI Name Elena Ford Other names Elena Ford-Niarchos | ||
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Full Name Elena Anne Ford-Niarchos Spouse Joseph Daniel Rippolone (m. 1996–2008), Stanley Jozef Olender (m. 1991–1996) | ||
Elena Anne Ford (born May 25, 1966) is an American businesswoman. She is the Chief Customer Experience Officer at Ford Motor Company and the first female Ford family member to hold an executive position at the company.
Contents
- Elena Ford discusses the legacy of Henry Ford
- Early life and education
- Career
- Personal life
- Marriages
- References
Elena Ford discusses the legacy of Henry Ford
Early life and education
Elena Ford was born Elena Anne Ford-Niarchos in 1966, the daughter of Charlotte Ford and Stavros Niarchos. Her parents divorced and her mother married Edward Downe Jr., the founder and chairman of Downe Communications in 1986. Her mother was previously married and divorced from J. Anthony Forstmann.
She has a bachelor's degree in business from New York University.
Career
On March 1, 2012, Ford took over a new global unit within the company, the Dealer and Consumer Experience group. She is responsible for standardizing the way dealerships interact with customers around the world and oversees global dealer strategy, planning, training and consumer experience.
As of March 1, 2013, Ford will be a vice-president of the company, making her one of thirty-eight officers running the company.
She is Director of global marketing for the company as a whole. She is responsible for marketing, product management and sales support activities for Ford Motor Company around the world. She is the first female Ford family member to hold a significant position at Ford. Ford will also establish standards and practices for China as Ford introduces the Lincoln brand in 2014.
Personal life
In 1997, Ford was involved in a dispute with her half-siblings by her father's third wife, Eugenia Livanos. Stavros Niarchos stipulated in his will that no one has the right to touch his billions until 2009, and two Swiss court decisions have effectively bound the hands of the Niarchos heirs from any inheritance.
Marriages
In 1991, Ford-Niarchos (as she was then known) married Stanley Jozef Olender, the owner of Stanley O's, an estate maintenance service in Southampton, New York. In 1996, after one child together she divorced Olender and she married Joseph Daniel Rippolone, a plumber, mechanic, builder, and inventor. They have five children together. In 2008 Joseph Rippolone and Elena Ford divorced by mutual agreement. The divorce proceedings lasted a year.