Ford Motor Co. is creating a specialized team to make its commercial vehicles more responsive to fleet needs, as part of a new organization that will help make its product lines more innovative, called Enterprise Product Line Management that will be led by Jim Baumbick.

Baumbick will begin his role as vice president of the unit on Sept. 1. He will report to Jim Farley, executive vice president of global markets, and will be responsible for global product strategy and planning. He will lead 10 cross-functional global product line teams that will oversee development of commercial vehicles, F-Series, urban utilities, rugged utilities, family utilities, performance vehicles, electric vehicles, compact trucks, luxury vehicles, and emerging market vehicles.

The teams will include members with expertise in engineering, product planning, manufacturing, marketing, and finance. Each team will manage its product line as an end-to-end business and leverage Ford's design, advanced product marketing, and user experience teams to "create breakthrough products and customer experiences," according to the company.

"Our most successful franchises — from F-150 to Mustang to Transit — are anchored in an obsession for the customer, deep product expertise and an unyielding commitment to strong returns," Farley said. "By taking this approach, we can raise the bar across our product lines. Each team will have clear accountability for winning in the marketplace and delivering profitable growth."

Baumbick, 47, brings 25 years of product development experience to his new role. Prior to this position, Baumbick served as executive director of global product planning and strategy where he led the development of the company's flexible modular architecture approach. Baumbick will maintain his present responsibilities in global product planning and strategy.