• by Karl Greenberg , June 27, 2011

Ford CEO Alan Mulally has been named "2011 Chief Executive of the Year." Nominations are garnered from readers of Chief Executive magazine. The 10 most frequently cited nominations were evaluated and a winner voted upon at a meeting of a peer Selection Committee, which took place earlier this year in New York City.

Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant was last year's honoree. "The turnaround and triumph of Ford is an amazing success story, due largely to his talents, leadership and courage," said Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant and 2010 CEO of the Year. "It's a turnaround not only of an American icon but more importantly, a global icon, as well."

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

Prior CEO of the Year winners include Bill Gates, Jack Welch, Michael Dell, A.G. Lafley, John Chambers, Anne Mulcahy, Larry Bossidy, Andy Grove and Herb Kelleher.

The 2011 CEO of the Year Selection Committee comprises Dan Glaser (CEO, Marsh), Grant, Fred Hassan (Chairman, Schering-Plough), William Hickey (CEO, Sealed Air), C. Robert Henrikson (CEO, MetLife), Christine Jacobs (CEO, Theragenics), Kristian P. Moor (CEO, Chartis), William R. 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), and James Turley (CEO, Ernst & Young). Tom Saporito, Chairman of RHR International, was an advisor to the Selection Committee.