Chrysler LLC recently announced that it has appointed Philip Murtaugh as chief executive officer of Asia Operations. In this role, Murtaugh will be responsible for all of Chrysler's Asian operations, including China and India. He will report to Michael Manley, executive vice president of international sales. "I can't think of anyone more qualified to lead our business activities in this critical growth region," says Manley. "Phil has a proven track record and we are excited he has joined our team." "Growth in international markets and leveraging partnerships are cornerstones of the Chrysler Recovery and Transformation Plan," adds Thomas W. LaSorda, the company's vice-chairman and president. Murtaugh was executive vice president of Chinese automaker Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (SAIC). SAIC is China's largest automotive company with sales of 1.3 million vehicles per year. SAIC has over 70 subsidiary companies in the automotive business, including well-known joint ventures with General Motors (GM) and Volkswagen. Before joining SAIC, Murtaugh served as chairman and chief executive officer of the General Motors China Group from June 2000 until April 2005. Based in Shanghai, he was responsible for the overall coordination of GM's extensive operations in mainland China and Taiwan. He also was a member of GM's Asia Pacific Strategy Board. Murtaugh earlier served as executive vice president of Shanghai General Motors and general manager of GM China's Shanghai representative office. He was part of the negotiating team and played a key role in the launch of Shanghai General Motors, GM's largest venture in China. Since joining GM in 1973 as a General Motors Institute (GMI) student with Fisher Body, Murtaugh held several positions in production, manufacturing, die and metal stamping, and product planning in the United States, Japan and China. These include director of manufacturing for GM Overseas Corporation in Japan, executive assistant to the executive director of product planning at Isuzu Motors and president of IBC in Luton, England. In addition to a bachelor's degree from GMI (now Kettering University), Murtaugh holds a master's degree in industrial management from Stanford University. For more information about DaimlerChrysler or Murtaugh, visit the company's Web site. |