DaimlerChrysler Streamlines Its Management Board
24 September 1999
DaimlerChrysler Streamlines Its Management Board
Reorganization Follows Successful Integration
Integration Functions Re-Allocated to Line Businesses
Clear Responsibilities and Leaner Process of Decision-Making
Three Brand-Focused Automotive Divisions Will Drive For Profitable Growth
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. and STUTTGART, Germany, Sept. 24 --
DaimlerChrysler AG today announced a streamlined management board,
following the successful completion of its integration program. The
restructuring reflects the global nature of the business, will enable greater
focus on markets, accelerate decision-making and deliver greater shareholder
value.
The new Management Board will have fewer members, with responsibilities
allocated to three automotive divisions, the aerospace and services divisions
and six functional activities. Apart from the joint chairmen, there will now
be 12 Management Board members. The new structure, effective October 1, 1999,
was approved by the company's Supervisory Board at today's meeting in
Frankfurt.
The automotive business will be managed through three brand-focused
divisions: the Mercedes-Benz/smart division, headed by Juergen Hubbert, the
Chrysler/Plymouth/Jeep/Dodge division, headed by James Holden*, and the
Commercial Vehicles division headed by Dieter Zetsche.
The Sales and Marketing organization will be folded into this structure,
safeguarding the further integration process and strengthening the sales and
marketing operation. The appointments of Holden and Zetsche reflect this
change. Both are marketing experts who formerly headed in their functions as
management board members worldwide sales and marketing for
Chrysler/Plymouth/Jeep/Dodge and Mercedes-Benz/smart, respectively.
Automotive Council will drive cross-fertilization of knowledge and ideas
The Chairmen's Integration Council and the Post-Merger Integration (PMI)
process set up last year and headed by Tom Stallkamp can now be disbanded, and
all ongoing integration initiatives will be allocated to line businesses.
There will be an overall Automotive Council, coordinated by Tom Gale, board
member for Product Development Chrysler/Plymouth/Jeep/Dodge to drive
integration opportunities and ensure cross-fertilization of innovation,
knowledge, technologies and ideas. A separate Sales and Marketing Council will
coordinate the worldwide Sales and Marketing Operations, ensuring a consistent
brand policy and intensifying customer focus.
Joint Chairmen Robert J. Eaton and Juergen E. Schrempp, said: "Having
completed our integration in only 16 months, we are now one company. It is
vital that we keep up the momentum that we built in the integration process to
ensure that we maintain our lead in technology and innovation. Our strategy is
to lead the automotive market in all the segments in which we compete. This
new structure will enable us, as never before, to go beyond customers'
expectations in defining new concepts and new vehicles to surprise and delight
them. It will bring fresh focus to our automotive businesses and enable us to
sharpen our strategies to better meet and exceed fast changing customer
expectations and growing competition across all our brands. It will also
accelerate decision-making, thereby delivering greater shareholder value."
Other management board changes
The restructuring will result in several other senior management changes:
Thomas T. Stallkamp, president of DaimlerChrysler Corporation and board
member of DaimlerChrysler AG in charge of integration, will retire from the
company, effective December 31. Until then, to ensure an orderly transition,
Mr. Stallkamp will serve as Vice Chairman of DaimlerChrysler Corporation.
"Since the initial planning of the merger, I have spent most of my personal
and professional time on the formation of a balanced base for the integration.
With our North American sales and profits strong, a new labor agreement
negotiated and business systems defined, I believe this is an appropriate time
to explore new opportunities for myself and my family," Stallkamp said.
"The majority of my career has been spent implementing supply chain
management and creating new business methods. I would like to continue to
explore those areas at a less hectic pace," he concluded.
Juergen Schrempp said: "I am grateful to Tom Stallkamp for the important
role he played in the formation and implementation of our merger. Under his
leadership, the merger achieved the momentum necessary to ensure its success,
preparing us for this senior management realignment and a successful launch of
our next phase of evolution and growth."
Bob Eaton continued: "Over the past nineteen years, Tom Stallkamp has made
extraordinary contributions to both our company and the automobile and
transportation industries. He has played a critical role in making our
historic merger work, helping set DaimlerChrysler on a course to realize all
the promise inherent in this landmark business combination. Indeed, when he
leaves, he will take with him the respect and appreciation of his many friends
and colleagues at DaimlerChrysler."
Theodor Cunningham will head up Sales and Marketing for Chrysler/
Plymouth/ Jeep/ Dodge as Executive Vice President Global Sales and Marketing
for DaimlerChrysler Corporation, reporting to Jim Holden. With the added
responsibility for both international and domestic sales and marketing,
Cunningham has elected to leave the management board in order to focus all his
efforts on distribution and brand development.
Kurt Lauk, board member responsible for the Commercial Vehicle division,
will also leave the company effective September 30, 1999 and is succeeded by
Dieter Zetsche.
Guenther Fleig has been appointed head of Human Resources. Fleig,
currently CEO of DaimlerChrysler France, will replace Heiner Tropitzsch, who
will retire by mutual agreement effective September 30, 1999.
New Head of smart Operation
In a move to build on the recent success of the passenger car brand smart,
the company has appointed Andreas Renschler, Senior Vice President, as head of
smart. Renschler is currently head of Management Development within Human
Resources. Prior to this, he led the team that developed the Mercedes-Benz
M-Class and its manufacturing plant in Tuscaloosa/Alabama.
New Head of Corporate Strategy
Effective January 1st, 2000, Aloysius Rauen currently Senior Vice
President for Military Aircraft Operations, will succeed Rudiger Grube as Head
of Corporate Strategy. He will report to Eckhard Cordes. Grube, who developed
and ran the PMI-Process, will see it through to completion. He leaves to
pursue a new entrepreneurial career.
Bob Eaton and Juergen Schrempp said: "Rudiger Grube set the benchmark for
successfully managing integration in a global merger. We wish him all the best
in his new venture."
New appointments in the international DaimlerChrysler Marketing and
Sales network
The company appointed Reinhard Lyhs, currently CEO of DaimlerChrysler
Belgium, to succeed Guenther Fleig as CEO of DaimlerChrysler France. Michael
Jackson, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, has submitted his
resignation. "We thank Mike Jackson for a tremendously successful job,"
Schrempp said. "He leaves an organization he prepared for future challenges in
distribution after achieving record sales for Mercedes-Benz in the U.S. We
wish him the best of luck in his new career." Jackson will be succeeded by
Paul Halata, currently CEO of Mercedes-Benz UK, soon to be merged with the
Chrysler sales organization and renamed DaimlerChrysler UK.
Halata is succeeded by Joe Eberhardt, up to now Head of Marketing of
Mercedes-Benz USA. In the Italian Sales and Marketing unit, Wolfgang Schrempp
has been appointed CEO of DaimlerChrysler Italia, succeeding Jochen Prange,
who is retiring.
Juergen Schrempp and Bob Eaton said: "Our company moves forward with a
world-class senior management team that is thoroughly committed to delivering
enhanced value to our shareholders by building and delivering superior
products and services to our customers worldwide, with a highly motivated and
skilled workforce."
DaimlerChrysler in brief
DaimlerChrysler is a global automotive, transportation and services
company, with expected revenues of Euro 146 billion in 1999 and an
international workforce of more than 460,000 employees.
Established in 1998 with the successful merger of Daimler-Benz and
Chrysler, DaimlerChrysler has headquarters in Auburn Hills/Michigan and
Stuttgart/Germany. The company comprises the passenger car brands Mercedes-
Benz, Chrysler, Plymouth, Jeep, Dodge and smart, and the commercial vehicle
brands Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner, Sterling and Setra. The company had
vehicle sales in 1998 of 4.5 million units and plans to sell significantly
more than 4.5 million units this year.
DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (Dasa), one of the leading European aerospace
companies, holds a 38% stake in Airbus and is active in MTU propulsion systems
and Dornier space systems. DaimlerChrysler Services (debis) is the world's
fourth largest financial services company outside the banking sector and is
also active in IT business, through its debis Systemhaus.
For 1999, DaimlerChrysler confirmed double digit increases in unit sales
and revenues compared to 1998. Profits for the full year are expected to grow
faster than revenues. For the six months up to June 1999, DaimlerChrysler
reported operating profits of $5.5 billion, up 11%, and revenues of
$74.6 billion, up 10%.
For the period from January to August 1999, the company achieved record
sales in all its businesses, outperforming most of its markets and
competitors: passenger cars revenues were up 12%, compared to the same period
of last year. Commercial vehicle sales were up 17% in the same period. The
aerospace division reported an increase of revenues of 8%, revenues of the
services division were up 27% on a comparable basis.
Board of Management of DaimlerChrysler at a glance
Chairmen: Robert J. Eaton
Juergen E. Schrempp
Mercedes-Benz/smart Juergen Hubbert
Chrysler/Plymouth/
Jeep/Dodge James Holden
Commercial Vehicles Dieter Zetsche
Product Development
Chrysler/Plymouth/Jeep/Dodge Tom Gale
Aerospace Manfred Bischoff
Services Klaus Mangold
Chief Financial Officer Manfred Gentz
Corporate Development
and IT Management Eckhard Cordes
Global Purchasing Gary Valade
Purchasing
Chrysler/Plymouth/Jeep/Dodge Tom Sidlik
Research and Development Klaus Vohringer
Human Resources Gunther Fleig
*Holden will also serve as President of DaimlerChrysler Corporation, the
U.S. legal entity.