The Auto Writer

Some automotive executives disappear when they leave or are given the boot (Rick Wagoner) while others land on their feet again taking on new roles with a different, sometimes competing automaker. Jill Lajdziak, former head of GM’s Saturn division, can be found in the latter category having recently been appointed to Vice President, Sales and Marketing for smart USA, a division of the Penske Automotive Group.

Lajdziak will start in her new position on January 1st, one day after officially ending her tenure at Saturn. General Motors announced in October that the former top executive for Saturn would retire at the end of the year, the same date when GM will attempt to officially bring that brand to a close.

Promoting Saturn

For Lajdziak, Smart will present a repeat of an earlier challenge in her career: bolster the image of a one model car company with consumers. In 1990 when Saturn was officially launched, the automaker had just one model to sell, its compact “S” line. It would be several years before additional models were brought on-board which meant that Saturn had to find its success with limited resources.

Early on, Saturn was a success despite model limitations and lack of support from its parent, General Motors. The brand, which was managed and marketed as a separate car company, wasn’t able to fully transition into a division of GM due mostly to competition with Chevrolet as well as GM’s own management and financial problems.

Saturn Penske

Up until a few months ago it appeared that the Penske Automotive Group would buy Saturn from GM, but that deal collapsed leading GM to declare the brand dead by year end. Obviously, the Penske team got to see a lot of Lajdziak when the negotiations were going on, so offering her the job of helping Smart get back on track seems like a sensible move.

Smart, however, may prove to be a much more formidable challenge for Lajdziak. Introduced in January 2008 by Penske, the exclusive distributor in the US, sales were strong when gas prices were high but collapsed when they returned to normal levels.

Limited Models

The ForTwo is a two-seater and is available in coupe or cabriolet. Powered by a minuscule 1.0L three cylinder engine, the car is peppy and returns very good gas mileage but it is best suited to be used as a city car. Other models would help the brand thrive, but owner Daimler appears as if it will be building an electric ForTwo first before expanding the product line.

Source: Penske Automotive Group/Smart USA