STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Feb. 26, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Gerry Keaney has been appointed Senior Vice President and new head of Marketing, Sales and Customer Service at Volvo Car Corporation. He succeeds Dieter Laxy who has decided to retire after four years in this position and 12 years with Volvo (Nasdaq:VOLVY) in total and more than 35 years in the international automotive industry.
Gerry Keaney, aged 46, will be based at Volvo's Head Office in Gothenburg and will assume his new position on March 1. He has worked for Volvo Car Corporation since 1990 and served most recently as President of Volvo Cars Beneluk Region (U.K., Ireland, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) between 1999 and 2002, during which time the operation developed very successfully under his leadership. Gerry Keaney moved to Sweden already in August 2002 in order to take up the challenge of Vice President Global Sales. His background is mainly in Sales and Marketing but also General Management.
"It feels very inspiring to take on the challenge of Marketing, Sales and Customer Service at the Volvo Car Corporation at this point, as we have just introduced the highly successful Volvo XC90 all over the world," said Gerry Keaney.
"We have a very competitive product range and with the aggressive product plan we have in store, I am convinced that Volvo's operations will grow," he added.
Mr. Laxy will be available as an advisor to Mr. Keaney, drawing on his broad experience from the car industry and his 12 years in different positions in a number of markets within Volvo Cars.
"Dieter is a long-time colleague of mine and is extremely well-liked and respected both within Volvo and among our competitors," said Hans-Olov Olsson, President and CEO of the Volvo Car Corporation. "I am delighted that he is willing to continue supporting us with advice and I wish him and his family many wonderful days," added Hans-Olov Olsson.
For further information please contact:
Christer Gustafsson at Volvo Car Corporation
Phone +46-31-59 65 25 or +46-708-20 80 15
Volvo Car Corporation has 27,000 employees, of whom 19,000 are in Sweden. Sales in 2002 reached approximately 408,000 cars, with a turnover of 120 billion SEK. The largest markets are USA, Sweden, Germany, U.K. and Japan. Volvo Car Corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. FMC is based in Dearborn outside Detroit in the USA.
This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net
The following files are available for download:
www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/02/26/20030226BIT00660/wkr0001.doc
www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/02/26/20030226BIT00660/wkr0002.pdf