Ford has nominated a new CEO for Europe as it wants more region-focused cars again. Jim Baumbick is named Ford of Europe’s first president in three years; his first task will be to develop and build those more Europe-focused cars.
Ford has named Jim Baumbick as its first dedicated European boss in three years, as part of a wide-reaching strategy to optimize its business in the region. Ford of Europe hasn’t had an official leader since the departure of former president Stuart Rowley in December 2022.
At the time, Rowley was indirectly replaced by Martin Sander, who was chairman of the Model E electrification division and general manager for passenger cars. Still, Sander left after just 18 months to return to his previous employer, Volkswagen.
A real Ford guy
Ford is now refilling the position with a long-serving member of its product development team, as it aims to “develop products relevant for European customers and drive faster, more efficient execution”.
Some years ago, when Ford was redesigning its worldwide strategy and electrifying its European operations, the manufacturer decided there wouldn’t be many car development activities on the old continent, and that R&D would become much less critical. Now, Ford has partly changed course again and wants more European Fords to be sold here.
In his previous role as Vice President of Advanced Product Development and Cycle/Program Planning, he will be replaced by Sam Basile, who is joining from General Motors.
Baumbick joined Ford in 1993 and has served in various high-ranking engineering and development roles globally, including as global head of product development. He has primarily been based at the American company’s Michigan headquarters. Still, he also spent a couple of years in Germany managing Ford’s crucial European C-segment models, the Focus and the Kuga.
In his new role, starting on 1 November, Baumbick will report to Ford vice-chairman John Lawler, rather than directly to CEO Jim Farley, as Rowley had done. That’s maybe a little odd, as Farley has also been the CEO of Ford of Europe from 2015 to 2017 before he moved to the States and the Dearborn headquarters to become, finally, the new boss in 2020.
A crucial period
Baumbick arrives in Europe at a crucial period in Ford’s electrification program. The firm stopped building the hugely popular Fiesta supermini so it could produce the fully electric Explorer and its coupe-style derivative, the Capri, at its Cologne factory.
But it recently announced it was cutting 1,000 jobs at the site due to slower-than-expected EV uptake in Europe and the factory running well below capacity.
Baumbick also arrives in the same month that Ford is due to stop producing the Focus after nearly three decades and close its second German factory in Saarlouis.
According to the British car magazine Autocar and other sources, a new electric C-segment model will enter production alongside the Kuga in Valencia in 2027 as an indirect Focus replacement.
Baumbick’s nomination means he will be charged with making sure that this new model and all other future models coming up are more precisely tailored to meet European market demands and rebuild Ford’s dwindling market share in Europe.
