 Automotive News All-Star Photo Gallery
| | | Over the past year, the auto industry has been buffeted by bankruptcies and bailouts, collapsing sales and CAFE changes. Many managers felt overwhelmed, but a select group prevailed. Starting on Page 24, we unveil our annual Automotive News All-Stars, leaders who triumphed in tough times. On Page 28, we profile the Automotive News Europe 2009 Eurostars, auto executives who stood out in that market. Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat S.p.A. and now Chrysler Group, made both lists and is our Industry Leader of the Year for 2009.
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All-Stars Index:
| Sergio Marchionne celebrated two big events last month: June 1 was his fifth anniversary as Fiat S.p.A. CEO and on June 17 he turned 57. Oh, and between those two dates, he was named CEO of a reborn Chrysler. |
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| As new-vehicle sales stalled in January, Childs introduced a program to improve customer satisfaction by giving Nissan and Infiniti dealers more freedom to please service customers. |
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| The Assurance program was so simple that it had other marketers slapping their foreheads and asking, “Why didn't I think of that?” Buy a Hyundai. If you lose your job, bring it back. Few cars came back, but an awful lot went out the doors of Hyundai dealerships. |
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| De Nysschen has kept Audi dealers on track toward sales goals and profitability despite disruptions in the economy and the credit market. In 2008, net profit at Audi's 190 exclusive dealerships increased 30 percent. |
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| Brown laid out a new direction for Ford: The automaker would work with suppliers, aiming to be the preferred customer for new technologies that suppliers develop. |
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| From the Car of the Year award for the Genesis to the blockbuster Assurance marketing program, John Krafcik led Hyundai to a superb year while other automakers suffered. Hyundai's market share is above 4 percent, an all-time best. |
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| Ford avoided bankruptcy. Now it faces the prospect of rivals General Motors and Chrysler gaining a cost advantage. Booth eased concerns, at least for now, by buying back $9.9 billion in debt at a reduced rate. |
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| In January, Fiat proposed a takeover of Chrysler LLC. In March, President Barack Obama's automotive task force approved the move. After a quick, surgical bankruptcy, Chrysler Group LLC emerged in early June. Fiat has a controlling 20 percent stake in the reborn automaker. In six months, Marchionne, 57, had altered the landscape of auto markets from the United States to Europe to Brazil. |
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| Colbeck steered Subaru's sales network to a striking feat in a disastrous year. It was the only mainstream company to increase U.S. sales, up 0.3 percent. It gained share, too, riding the strength of the new Impreza and Forester. |
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| Holt, a persistent advocate of online marketing, has pushed and prodded partner General Motors and its dealers to make corporate, regional and dealer marketing programs work together. |
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| Takeo Fukui, who stepped down as Honda's CEO this year, ended his career on a high note. He was one of the few auto CEOs to deliver a profit last year and to promise continued black ink this year. |
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| Mulally has kept his vision for One Ford rolling along without a federal handout. After the Detroit 3 CEOs were roughed up in congressional hearings last fall, Mulally could go it alone, unbowed. |
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| Fischer's Suburban Collection comprises 30 brands in 36 locations and is the 13th-largest automotive retail group in the United States. In a miserable market, the company produced record same-store sales last year. |
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| Center took the big gamble of challenging the mighty Toyota Prius with the clever "hybrid for everyone" campaign for the new Honda Insight. He also oversees the upscale repositioning of Acura, away from Volvo and Saab and more toward Lexus and Mercedes. |
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| In the history of American labor relations, Gettelfinger will stand out. And in the transformation of the domestic auto industry, he has been a pivotal figure. While fighting for the best deal for his members, Gettelfinger has had to factor in the decline of the Detroit 3 and the unimaginable collapse of the American automotive market of 2008-09. |
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| After Ford Motor Co. said last year that it would not require a federal bailout, the company launched a low-key PR campaign to distance itself from Chrysler LLC and General Motors. Day deftly deployed Ford executives to talk with the media, lawmakers and the public. |
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| Stronach made a bold and gutsy move by making a bid to take control of GM's European subsidiary, Adam Opel AG. His Magna International — the No. 4 global supplier to automakers based on 2008 sales — wants to create a new business model for Opel, producing vehicles for other automakers based on GM platforms. |
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| The Mercedes-Benz brand was never a big player in pre-owned vehicles. But when the exploding used-vehicle market of 2007 and 2008 indicated that Mercedes dealers needed to be on board, Lieb moved quickly. |
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| Kuzak can take much of the credit for Ford's product revolution. New and revamped vehicles such as the Ford Taurus, Fusion and Fusion Hybrid are earning accolades. |
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| Ten years ago, Chuck Ernst led the team that built Honda's factory in Lincoln, Ala. This past year, he pulled off a major feat of flexibility. |
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| Bangle, who resigned in February to open an independent design studio, will best be remembered for something called the Bangle butt — the trunk-lid design on the 2002 BMW 7 series. |
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| Samardzich has deftly handled some key powertrain launches, including a new six-speed automatic transmission; the development of an all-new diesel V-8 engine coming in January for Ford's Super Duty trucks; and a new twin-turbo, 3.5-liter V-6 debuting this summer in the Lincoln MKS and MKT and Ford Flex and Taurus SHO. |
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| No politician or bureaucrat has ever had such a profound effect on the auto industry. Last fall, General Motors and Chrysler LLC were within weeks of collapse. The Bush administration stepped in with federal money. Obama inherited two big manufacturers who were wards of the state. He doled out more money, but with big conditions. |
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