Minutes ago it was announced that Bob Lutz, along with several other high-level executives within General Motors will be “reassigned” to new positions today. The official announcement will be coming sometime during the day. Vice Chairman Lutz is currently in charge of marketing for the company.  

The Wall Street Journal broke the story and ran a piece stating the Lutz will no longer be charged with overseeing marketing but will still be, “on the team.” This is the work of Ed Whitacre, the interim CEO who was brought in just last week after the board asked for Fritz Henderson’s resignation.

Here’s the official GM press release:

GM Announces Leadership Changes



2009-12-04



DETROIT – To improve accountability
and responsibility for market performance in North America and around
the world, several key leadership changes were announced today by GM
Chairman and CEO, Ed Whitacre.



“I want to give people more
responsibility and authority deeper in the organization and then hold
them accountable,” Whitacre said. “We’ve realigned our leadership
duties and responsibilities to help us meet our mission to design,
build and sell the world’s best vehicles.”



Mark Reuss is named president of GM
North America. Reuss was briefly vice president of Engineering after
leading GM’s Holden operations in Australia in 2008. Reporting to Reuss
will be Susan E. Docherty, who is appointed vice president, Vehicle
Sales, Service and Marketing operations. Also aligned under the new
North American group will be Diana D. Tremblay, who is named vice
president, Manufacturing and Labor Relations. Tremblay was most
recently vice president of Labor Relations. Denise C. Johnson is named
vice president, Labor Relations. Johnson was most recently vehicle line
director and chief engineer for Global Small Cars.



Nick Reilly is named president, GM
Europe. Reilly has been leading the restructuring efforts in Europe
with the Opel/Vauxhall operations and will leave his role leading GM
International Operations.



Tim Lee is named president of GM
International Operations, overseeing GM’s Asia-Pacific, Latin America,
Africa, and Middle East operations. Lee was most recently group vice
president, Manufacturing and Labor Relations.



Bob Lutz remains vice chairman and will act as advisor on design and global product development.



Thomas G. Stephens remains vice
chairman of Global Product Operations, and will now take on global
purchasing in his organization, which will continue to be lead by
Robert E. Socia, vice president, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain.
Karl-Friedrich Stracke is appointed vice president, Engineering,
reporting to Stephens. Stracke was most recently executive director of
Engineering.



J. Christopher Preuss, vice president, Communications, will now report to Whitacre; he previously reported to Lutz.



The balance of the direct report
staff remains unchanged and includes CFO Ray G. Young; John F. Smith,
vice president Corporate Planning and Alliances; Terry Kline, vice
president IS&S; Mary T. Barra, vice president Human Resources; Mike
Millikin, vice president of Legal; and Ken C. Cole, vice president
Government Relations and Public Policy.



###



About General Motors: General Motors,
one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908.
With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 209,000 people in
every major region of the world and does business in some 140
countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34
countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following
brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel,
Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States,
followed by China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and
Germany. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle
safety, security and information services. General Motors acquired
operations from General Motors Corporation on July 10, 2009, and
references to prior periods in this and other press materials refer to
operations of the old General Motors Corporation. More information on
the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com.