DOUG VANDAGENS: THE SYNC SQUAD
Doug VanDagens, director, Ford Connected Service Solutions
- As director of Ford Connected Service Solutions, Doug VanDagens leads a 40-member team in driving the success of Ford’s in-vehicle technologies portfolio
- VanDagens grew up with a passion for cars, boats and motorcycles
- He helped Ford create successful relationships with Microsoft and SIRIUS satellite radio
Doug VanDagens, director of Ford Connected Service Solutions, leads a 40-member team in driving the success of Ford’s in-vehicle technologies portfolio, including Ford SYNC®, SIRIUS Travel Link™ and Ford Work Solutions.™
VanDagens grew up with a passion for cars, boats, motorcycles and anything with a powerful engine. He spent long hours in the garage modifying engine blocks and tweaking transmissions with his father to create high-performance masterpieces.
This car enthusiast translated his passion into spotting early trends and helping Ford create successful relationships with the likes of Microsoft and SIRIUS satellite radio. These relationships led to Ford’s first-to-market launches of in-vehicle technologies such as Ford SYNC and SIRIUS Travel Link.
For VanDagens, the right mix of products at the right time is what makes the current Ford portfolio of connectivity technologies a notch above the rest.
“At Ford, we understand that our success depends on being the first to market with the technologies that people crave,” he said.
VanDagens agrees that his career path is a bit nontraditional for a University of Michigan engineering school graduate who later received an MBA from Indiana University.
“I’ve worked in finance; collaborated on joint ventures for powertrain development and manufacturing, vehicle assembly and vehicle engineering; and helped Ford launch everything from recycling centers to customer call centers and complicated telematics joint ventures with companies such as Sprint and Qualcomm,” said VanDagens. “Wherever I went, I was always looking for that ‘white space’ opportunity to develop or take an existing product, create a new market for it and successfully sell it to customers.”
VanDagens led the start-up of COVISINT, an e-commerce hub between Ford, General Motors, DaimlerChrysler and Renault-Nissan where they could share product development, quality, supply chain management and purchasing applications. He also served as a board member and officer of Wingcast, a Ford-Qualcomm telematics joint venture.
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About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 201,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford’s products, please visit www.ford.com.
Oct. 28, 2009