Ford appoints new company officers in Europe and Asia Pacific

Ford Motor Company announced that the Board of Directors has elected four new Vice-Presidents effective June 1, as the company continues to grow and strengthen its operations in Asia Pacific and Europe.

In Europe, Jeff Wood, 52, Ford Director of Manufacturing for
North America Vehicle Assembly Operations, has been elected a company officer and appointed vice president of Manufacturing, Ford of Europe, effective June 1. Wood replaces Mike Flewitt who has elected to leave the company to pursue other career interests.

In Asia Pacific, Gary Johnson, 48, Vice-President of Manufacturing, Ford Asia Pacific and Africa, has been elected a company officer and will continue to lead the company’s manufacturing activities in the region. Kumar Galhotra, 46, has been elected a Company Officer and will continue in his role as Vice-President of Product Development, Ford Asia Pacific and Africa. In addition, Marin Burela, 50, president of Chang An Ford Mazda Motor Company, also has been elected a company officer in his current role.

"Today's appointments speak both to the wealth of talent we have within Ford and our commitment to deliver our global plan for great products, a strong business and contributions to a better world," said Bill Ford, Ford's Executive Chairman. "We are fortunate to have such a capable global leadership team to implement and achieve the full potential of our plan.”

In his new role, Wood will assume direct responsibility for the company’s manufacturing operations in Europe. He will report to Stephen Odell, Chairman and CEO, Ford of Europe, and John Fleming, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing and Labor Affairs.

Since joining Ford as a plant engineering supervisor at Ford’s Norfolk Assembly Plant in 1988, Wood has held a variety of leadership positions within Ford Manufacturing including serving as the director for Global Manufacturing Quality, plant manager of Ford’s Michigan Truck Plant, and director of manufacturing for Truck Operations. Wood also served as product development director for the Electronics Division as well as vehicle line director for D platform vehicles. He was appointed to his current role in 2008. Wood holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Old Dominion University in Virginia.

Johnson joined Ford in 1986 as a supervisor at Ford’s Auto Alliance International plant in Flat Rock, Mich. and has served in a variety of manufacturing leadership roles, including director of manufacturing for Engine Operations, plant manager at Ford’s Michigan Truck Plant and director of Vehicle Operations for the company’s Quality organization. He has been leading manufacturing activities in Asia since 2010. Johnson holds a bachelor’s degree in business management and administration science from Central Michigan University.

Galhotra joined Ford in 1988 as a Design Engineer. Since that time, he has served in a variety of roles within Ford Product Development, including chief engineer for the Ford Escape and vehicle programs director for the small front-wheel-drive/rear-wheel-drive vehicles. He also worked in Japan as Mazda’s Executive Officer in charge of program management globally. Galhotra has been leading product development in Ford’s Asia Pacific and Africa region since 2009. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan.

Burela joined Ford in 1984 as an Engineering Ford College Graduate and has served in a variety of roles including Manufacturing, Marketing and Sales, and Product Development. He worked as the executive director of Global B Cars in Ford of Europe, the director of Manufacturing for Land Rover and as the president of Ford Australia from 2008 to 2010. Burela was appointed to his current role in 2010 and holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Australia’s Deakin University.

With this announcement, there is no change to reporting relationships for Johnson, Galhotra and Burela. Johnson continues to report to Joe Hinrichs, Ford group vice president and president of Asia Pacific and Africa as well as Fleming. Galhotra continues to reports to Hinrichs and Raj Nair, group vice president, Global Product Development. Burela continues to report to David Schoch, chairman and CEO of Ford Motor China.
                                                                                                      
“Jeff, Gary, Kumar and Marin play key roles in Ford’s commitment to deliver world-class products globally,” said Alan Mulally, Ford’s President and CEO. “Today is another important step to delivering aggressive growth in Asia as well as an exciting, profitably-growing company for the good of all of our stakeholders.”

Posted in: Bill Ford,Ford,Ford Asia Pacific and Africa,Ford Motor Company,Gary Johnson,International,New Appointment,Stephen Odell