GREENWICH, Conn. -

Ford’s No. 1 boss has received a top-flight honor from his contemporaries in the corporate world, who picked him as 2011 Chief Executive of the Year.
Alan Mulally, Ford’s chief executive officer, joins a list of winners of the Chief Executive magazine’s honor that includes such leaders as Bill Gates, Jack Welch and Michael Dell.

“The success he showed in the face of incredible difficulty was just extraordinary," said James Turley, chairman and CEO of Ernst & Young and a 2011 Selection Committee member.

“The foresight he showed throughout the process, the courage he showed in making some tough decisions on popular brands, the global mindset he showed, and above all, the statesmanship he showed when two major competitors were on the public dole shows he was thinking for the good of the country as well as his company and industry,” Turley added.

Other members of the selection committee included:

Dan Glaser (CEO, Marsh)
Hugh Grant (CEO, Monsanto)
Fred Hassan (chairman, Schering-Plough)
William Hickey (CEO, Sealed Air),
Robert Henrikson (CEO, MetLife)
Christine Jacobs (CEO, Theragenics)
Kristian Moor (CEO, Chartis)
William Nuti (CEO, NCR)
Steve Odland (former CEO, Office Depot)
Thomas J. Quinlan III (CEO, R.R. Donnelley)
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld (CEO, The Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute)

Officials noted that serving as an advisor to the committee was Tom Saporito, chairman of RHR International.

“The turnaround and triumph of Ford is an amazing success story, due largely to his (Mulally) talents, leadership and courage,” said Grant, who won last year’s award. “It’s a turnaround not only of an American icon but more importantly, a global icon, as well.”

Jacobs added: “Mulally has created a leadership template for all of us to follow going forward for what growing a business in the United States is going to look like.”

Other former winners of the magazine include A.G. Lafley, John Chambers, Anne Mulcahy, Larry Bossidy, Andy Grove and Herb Kelleher.

In an interview posted on www.chiefexecutive.net with Chief Executive’s J.P. Donlon, Mulally was asked, “What is the most important quality for a leader to have?”

“I think that the most important thing is a point-of-view and a purpose and … a compelling vision that everybody endorses, believes in and is excited about,” he said. “And then maybe the next is … what’s the plan to deliver that? What’s the fundamental strategy? What are we all going to do to make our dream come true?”

Mulally continued: “And then I think another one is being able to implement on a regular basis, identify the problem, solve the problem and do it in a positive, can-do, find-a-way attitude, so that everyone is helping everyone.”

The interview can be viewed here.

There will be an invitation-only event next month at the New York Stock Exchange to commemorate Mulally’s award. It will be hosted by NYSE Euronext and the Chief Executive Group.