Fields will be working with TPG Capital’s industrials team, looking for ways to create change and innovation in the industrials sector.

Jack Daly, partner at TPG, said: “Mark is an invaluable addition to our team as we pursue this sector and look to build growth-oriented, technology-enabled businesses.”

Fields’ expertise extends well beyond the automotive sector. He has global experience in manufacturing, services, technology, retail, and financial services, having worked in Japan, Europe and North and South America.

In his 28 years at Ford, Fields led some of its most significant transformations, including returning the company’s North America business to profit, while also leading the fastest global manufacturing expansion and some of the most aggressive global product introductions in its history. He also helped to save Mazda from the brink of bankruptcy.

Fields was also the force behind key innovations such as the Ford SYNC in-vehicle connectivity system, the first aluminum-bodied F-150 pick-up, and the creation of the company’s Palo Alto research center, which is driving the future of mobility.

Fields said: “New technology is driving change and creating opportunities for growth and value creation throughout business operations.

“That gives us the opportunity to rethink traditional industrial applications, such as supply chains, like never before.

“Having spent my career in an industry that was, and continues to be, on the leading edge of technology and disruption, I look forward to working with TPG to find new opportunities to create change and innovate throughout the industrial sector.”

TPG’s industrials team recently invested in Transplace, a leading-edge supply chain logistics company that combines intelligence, technology, and operational solutions to provide transportation management services.

Looking ahead, TPG executives see further opportunities to invest in areas such as outsourced services, logistics, packaging, mobility, resource efficiency and a variety of industrial technologies.