08.06.2011 SENIOR MANAGEMENT RESHUFFLE AT CHRYSLER GROUP

DODGE CHARGER R/T

The key change in yesterday's senior management reshuffle at the Chrysler Group is at the Dodge brand, where Ralph Gilles is out and Chrysler Canada's Reid Bigland takes over in charge. Photo: Dodge's newly facelifted Charger sedan.

Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne has made his first reshuffle of the U.S. carmaker's senior management, the announcement coming just days after all outstanding government loans were repaid and Fiat finally took up a controlling stake. In a parallel to the metrics that Marchionne introduced to Fiat, Chrysler's slew of senior managers are being handed a portfolio of responsibilities.

The key change is to the Dodge brand, where Ralph Gilles is out and Chrysler Canada's Reid Bigland takes over. Bigland also becomes the head of U.S. sales, replacing Fred Diaz, while retaining his on-going responsibility for Canadian operations. Meanwhile David Buckingham has been appointed to the newly created role of Chief Operating Officer of Chrysler Canada where he will report directly to Bigland. Previously, Buckingham was Vice President - Sales, Chrysler Canada.

Gaining and losing jobs in this reshuffle is Diaz who is now appointed President and CEO of Chrysler de Mexico, which includes responsibility for Latin American markets. Diaz, who is relieved of his current U.S. sales responsibility, will continue in his role in charge of the Ram truck division.

While Gilles loses responsibility for the Dodge car brand he continues with his current position as design chief for all the Chrysler Group brands and is now put in charge of the newly formed Street and Racing Technology (SRT) division which will spread itself across all the brands and also includes the company's motorsports activities. Creating the niche SRT unit adds yet another division to the Chrysler Group portfolio and also evokes close parallels to Fiat's own Abarth division.

Abarth was originally set up as a sop to the now departed Fiat brand boss Luca De Meo and isn't an especially financially viable unit; if anything Abarth's standalone showroom structure in Europe has negated most of the effects of the traditional concept of a 'halo' brand - to attract consumers' attentions towards the mainstream models. However since De Meo departed from the Fiat Group to take up the top marketing position at VW, Abarth has been downgraded and most of its ambitious plans torn up with responsibility for the Scorpion's fortunes now added to the brief of Fiat's CTO Harald J Wester.

Finally Joe ChamaSrour is reassigned to International Operations reporting to Mike Manley, President and CEO of the Jeep brand who is head of this unit. All changes are effective immediately.

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