“The most important thing is to simultaneously deal with reality - really the way it is, not the way you wished it could be or you hoped it could be - but also have a vision about where you want to go.”

American aerospace engineer and manufacturing executive

Alan Mulally is an American aerospace engineer and manufacturing executive. He served as chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes from 1998 to 2006 and later led Ford Motor Company as president and chief executive officer from 2006 to 2014. Mulally is known for his leadership in large-scale industrial organizations, first in aviation and then in the automobile industry. His career is closely associated with managing complex engineering and manufacturing operations at two of the best-known American companies.