As Ford Authority reported last week, long-time Ford Motor Company employee Dianne Craig will be retiring from her current position as the president of Lincoln at the end of the month. While Craig just took over that position from Joy Falotico in December 2022 after she also opted to retire, the outgoing executive has spent 38 years with The Blue Oval, holding a variety of roles along the way. Now, Craig will be replaced by Joaquin Nuno-Whelan, who – interestingly enough – won’t be reporting to Ford CEO Jim Farley.
Rather, Nuno-Whelan will report directly to Ford Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Lisa Materazzo, with dual reporting to Andrew Frick, president, Ford Blue and Model e and interim head of Ford Pro. What’s particularly interesting about this development is the fact that when she took over as Lincoln President in 2022, Craig was tabbed to report directly to Farley. At this point, it is unclear if this move is significant for the luxury brand.
This is also notable as Lincoln faces its fair share of challenges these days, including tariffs placed on the Lincoln Nautilus, which is produced in China and imported to the U.S. There have also been many concerns pertaining to Chinese software used in vehicles on American roads, at least, as it relates to potential security threats imposed by such models. On top of that, the future of the Lincoln Corsair is a bit murky at the moment, as production of it and the Ford Escape are seemingly set to end at the Louisville Assembly plant later this year as it’s retooled to accommodate a future EV model. The incoming Lincoln president will certainly have his hands full.
On the bright side, Lincoln has produced some strong sales results as of late. In the U.S., the luxury brand closed out Q4 2024 by posting a 35 percent increase to 30,293 units – and that success applied to all four models in the current lineup, too. Regardless, Lincoln’s strategy has changed considerably as of late, shifting away from EVs and toward a pair of new models that haven’t yet been revealed.
Comments
Good. Otherwise, it’d be Lincoln Mustangs and Raptors and little else.
Both Materazzo and Frick report to Farley. So, instead of the Lincoln president being equal to them, they drop a level down in the org chart. It doesn’t feel like good news because it seems like Lincoln will operate more in line with the other lower divisions/units.
I was going to ask if those two report directly to Farley.
I still find it interesting that the market Lincoln is competing in has competitors who still offer sedans. In a world market, that certainly has to put them at a disadvantage.
There are Lincoln sedans in China.
can’t believe lincoln building an SUV for the US market in China came back to bite them in the ass….didn’t see that coming.
Love the sarcasm !
I will remain hopeful that Lincoln will build the Zephyr in the US to fulfill the unmet consumer demand for a sedan, specifically a hybrid replacement for the MKZ. I recently sold my mint 2015 MKZ hybrid and purchased a Nautilus Reserve III hybrid which will have to do until Lincoln gets in its right mind.
The unqualified Dianne Craig, like her predecessor was doing her best to send Lincoln to its grave, I wish she never got the job in the first place, now, hopefully Lincoln has new life.
Lincoln sold less that half the number of Cadillacs last year so this ‘reporting’ move is rather head-scratching.
Amazing (kind of pathetic) that Ford couldn’t find someone within the organization to fill that position… Either a lack of talent or lack of interest.
Bring back the Mercury Cyclone. A division CEO is not necessary because we don’t need a whole line of models. Just the Cyclone – maybe slightly larger than the Mustang but sharing much of the components. Put a Hot Rod Lincoln motor in it.
What’s there to report?
Just bury Lincolin
Lincoln needs better vehicle lineup moving away from quiet luxury (ie we don’t know how to run a company) to something more aggressive and performance oriented.
What ever happened to the big news of Lincoln renaming itself as Lincoln motor car company a few years ago. It just got worse instead of better. Part of Ford but separate is the move it should have done decades ago.