Job Cuts as Ford Boss Changes Gear

[maccamom]

Here's hoping they leave the production line employees alone for once instead of punishing them for mistakes made above.


Job Cuts as Ford Boss Changes Gear (The Age)

ONE of the first things new Ford Australia president Marin Burela will have to do is cut employment numbers at the struggling car maker.

While he is confident that the production line cuts announced a month ago — which will take effect in November and December — are the right size, the rest of the organisation will also have to be reduced, he said at the Sydney Motor Show.

The situation is similar to that facing Ford's parent company in the US, where slumping domestic sales have forced a restructuring of operations.

Ford Australia, which has lost money in the past two financial years, cannot expect much support from the US, as the parent company and its main US rival General Motors have been engulfed by the financial crisis.

Citigroup listed both companies as a "sell" because an increasing number of potential car buyers were finding it impossible to raise finance.

Ford's shares dropped 8.9% to their lowest price since 1983 while GM's shares slumped to a 56-year low.

Mr Burela was not underestimating the challenges he was facing in Australia, but he was optimistic.

"We need to be ahead of the game in terms of making sure we right-size our capacity in terms of demand for locally produced cars," he said in reference to the plan to cut output 25% and reduce the workforce by 350 people.

But he said the company had also been studying what that would mean for the rest of the workforce.

"We are going to be rebalancing over the next couple of months," he said. "We need to be realistic about where we are and where we're heading."

But cutting the staff is only one aspect of the challenge. Mr Burela and his recently appointed sales and marketing director, Beth Donovan, are going to have to persuade Australians that Ford is not just a large-car company.

"In Australia, we have seen a seismic shift in the industry," he said. "It used to be a large-car nation but now a whole rainbow of products are required."

He said Ford was well positioned as far as product went, but not enough customers knew it yet.

"Our line-up includes the new Fiesta, the Focus and the Mondeo," he said. "It's second to none.

"The challenge for us … is to communicate to the Australian consumer that we are just as relevant in the small-car business as we have been in large cars."

The new Ford Focus advertising devised under the guidance of Ms Donovan has moved a long way from the soft approach of the past. The ad compares Focus with a series of rivals and claims advantages in several areas.

"We have nothing to apologise for," she said.

"The ad says here's our product, here's where the leaders are in the segment and here's how we stand up to them.

"We need to build the brand. We don't need to be apologetic."