Mulally Likely to Pare Down Ford's Eight Brands

In what is likely to be a positive strategy that will toss-out 50’s-era thinking, according to the Wall Street Journal, Alan Mulally (Ford’s CEO) is aiming at paring down the automaker’s eight brands in favor of more efficient models that have a Ford feel. Much the way BMW has done.

This move would be consistent with speculation (including FordMuscle’s) that many of Ford’s problems are due to the fact that the “lowest” brand on the totem pole carries the name of the Corporation….FORD.

While Ford is expected to sell its Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover brands, the fate of Ford’s Volvo brand will be a key indicator of Mr. Mulally’s direction and how far he will go in simplifying the company’s roster.

An article written by Monica Langley from the Wall Street Journal hits on some key points that really show Mulally is going to make a difference at Ford…

Mr. Mulally scrambled to familiarize himself with Ford’s vehicles. On a table in his office, he laid out 12 different prop rods used to hold up hoods of various Ford models. He demonstrated to managers that this variation is costly but doesn’t matter to consumers.

Derrick Kuzak (Ford’s Global Product Leader) said that Ford has a longstanding practice of each product line operating independently, which resulted in differentiation in a bid to produce a “unique car.” Mr. Mulally replied: “World-class companies don’t operate this way”

Full article at www.post-gazette.com