Mazda shifts execs to the regions

Mazda Motor of America hopes the elimination of four layers of management and the shift of top executives to its regions will mean better service for consumers.
The key to the company’s recent reorganization is a new regional autonomy. The regions have been given the power to make decisions about marketing, sales, service, parts and vehicle distribution, and regional managers answer directly to the president–leaving only three layers between Mazda dealers and president Sonny Sonoguchi. In giving Sonoguchi this responsibility over sales, Mazda has created a straight line between the U.S.