Lincoln hires former BMW, GM public relations exec Kowaleski
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DETROIT -- Tom Kowaleski, a veteran public-affairs executive, has joined Lincoln as its interim PR team leader, a Ford Motor Co. spokesman said today.
Kowaleski, who once headed General Motors' communications staff, most recently worked at BMW of North America. In joining Ford Motor's Lincoln brand, he now has worked for each of the Detroit 3 automakers.
He steps in as the third Lincoln PR head since late last year. Christian Bokich left Lincoln in December. The position was open until March, when Joe Jacuzzi took it, then left after less than a month. Jacuzzi now works for Audi.
Kowaleski had served as a consultant to Lincoln PR when Jacuzzi was there.
Ford is gearing up to overhaul Lincoln to draw younger luxury customers.
The redesigned 2013 Lincoln MKZ sedan, plus the refreshed MKS sedan and MKT crossover, are among seven new or revamped Lincoln products to be introduced by the end of 2014.
In addition, Lincoln is promising to outdo the high-volume luxury brands with customer service and revamped dealerships.
In its quest to improve customer service in dealerships, Lincoln has turned to a global organization of hotel concierges for training help and will set up a concierge service for shoppers.
But the brand continues to lose ground. Lincoln's U.S. sales have dropped 1 percent to 34,418 through May in an overall market that has increased 13 percent.
You can reach James B. Treece at jtreece@crain.com.
