DUNTON, Essex, Oct. 26, 2020 – Lisa Brankin has been appointed as managing director, Ford of Britain and Ireland, effective Nov. 1, 2020. In this role, Brankin will be responsible for all of Ford’s marketing, sales and service activities in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and will report to Jon Williams, vice president, Sales, Ford of Europe.
She had been appointed managing director on an interim basis in early October and replaces Andy Barratt who has elected to retire from Ford after 40 years of service.
“Lisa has shown great leadership over many years in her senior roles in the Ford of Britain team and is the right person to take the business forward in our largest market in Europe,” said Roelant de Waard, vice president, Marketing, Sales and Service and general manager, Passenger Vehicles, Ford of Europe. “At the same time, we thank Andy for his many years of service and contributions to Ford.”
Prior to her new position, Brankin was director, Passenger Vehicles, Ford of Britain and Ireland, having previously been director, Sales, Ford of Britain, from January 2019 and director, Marketing, Ford of Britain from August 2015.
Brankin’s other roles in the Ford of Britain leadership team have included being director, Dealer Operations, where she was responsible for all sales support and dealer representation activities, including the implementation of Transit Specialist Dealer Centres and rolling out the FordStore initiative, a network of upgraded, new-look dealerships where customers experience the full range of Ford vehicles and services.
Brankin joined Ford in September 1990 as a graduate trainee and has held various roles within Ford’s sales and marketing and communications functions.
Her replacement as director, Passenger Vehicles, is Anthony Ireson, the current director, Ford Customer Service Division, Ford of Britain and Ireland, and who had previously been director, Marketing, Ford of Europe. Ireson’s replacement as FCSD director is Sarah Brettle, who is presently manager, Field Operations, Ford Customer Service Division, Ford of Britain and Ireland.
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Ford of Britain has been sales leader in the U.K. for passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles for 42 and 54 consecutive years, respectively. A Ford model has been the country’s best-selling passenger vehicle for 46 years, with Fiesta being the country’s top-selling vehicle for the last 10 years. The U.K. is Ford’s third-largest global market and accounts for around 30 percent of total Ford vehicle sales in Europe. Ford directly employs around 6,500 people in the U.K., with many more employed in its extensive dealer network. The Ford Britain Dunton Campus in Essex is the home of its European commercial vehicle business group, the Ford of Britain national sales company, Ford’s banking arm – Ford Credit Europe – and powertrain engineering. Ford’s manufacturing operations are a UK export success story with around 85 percent of engines and 100 percent of transmissions exported to more than 15 countries on six continents. The value of these exports, including machined engine components, is around £2.5 billion annually.
