Ford names Dianne Craig to head U.S. sales; Mark Buzzell named CEO of Canada unit

DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. today named Dianne Craig, head of the company’s Canada division, as its new U.S. director of sales effective Jan. 1.Craig replaces Dave Mondragon, 56, director of U.S. sales since November 2013. Mondragon will become director of retail strategy and innovation on Jan. 1, a Ford spokesman said.Craig has been Ford of Canada’s president and CEO since November 2011, when she took that post from Mondragon. She will be succeeded by Mark Buzzell, general manager for the U.S. western market area.“Dianne Craig’s outstanding contributions at Ford of Canada make her the right person to help build future sales success in the U.S.,” Joe Hinrichs, Ford president of the Americas, said in a statement.Craig, 52, was named one of Automotive News’ 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry last year.Craig will take over the U.S. role as auto sales stagnate following six years of growth. Ford’s U.S. sales are down 0.6 percent on the year to 2.16 million units through October, as slow car demand offsets gains in light-truck sales.The Ford brand has led Canada in sales for the past five years under Craig’s leadership, the automaker said, although Fiat Chrysler Automobiles won the overall title last year for the first time.“While the sales leadership title is a nice pride point for our dealers and employees, what I consider our greatest accomplishment is how we achieved that success. We are the best-selling brand due to an unwavering focus on what is best for our customers,” Craig said in a statement from Ford.The automaker’s Canadian sales are down 4.6 percent on the year through October to 278,437 units, compared with a 2.5-percent gain in Canadian sales for the industry as a whole.Tony Faria, co-director of automotive and vehicle research at the University of Windsor in Canada, said Craig has done “a good job in Canada” but said she may also have benefited from a popular lineup of Ford vehicles throughout her tenure. “The F-150 is Canada’s No. 1 selling vehicle,” Faria told Automotive News Canada. “That certainly gives her a leg up on sales.”

Ford names Dianne Craig to head U.S. sales; Mark Buzzell named CEO of Canada unit

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