Nissan has announced a realignment of its global regions, to drive through the next phase of the Nissan NEXT global transformation plan in the newly created AMIEO region ( Africa, Middle East, India, Europe (including Russia) and Oceania).

Globally, seven geographic regions will become four - Japan and ASEAN, the Americas, China, and the new AMIEO region.

AMEIO will cover more than 140 markets with a population of around 3.8 billion, with 45 Nissan products on sale ranging from the iconic Nissan Patrol SUV to the all-electric Nissan LEAF. The new region will enable faster decision-making and create a more flexible working model across a number of markets where Nissan is electrifying its model range.

Gianluca de Ficchy, currently Chairman of Nissan Europe, will be Chairman of the new region. Guillaume Cartier, currently Chairman of the AMI region, will become President of AMI and Vice-Chair of the new region, responsible for marketing & sales.

The AMIEO region and management team will take effect from October 1st, with full implementation of the new region to begin following consultation with employee representatives in Europe.

“This realignment and reorientation will help us to be more competitive, improving the quality and speed of our operations and allowing us to deploy the latest technologies more consistently and more quickly to our customers,” said De Ficchy.

“The increased scale and scope of this new region will align the business better to meet the challenges we are facing across the automotive industry. This will mean a positive shift in the way we operate and cooperate across the globe, in order to ensure the future success of the business.”

Management of the Manufacturing, R&D, Planning, Administration and Finance functions will from October 1 cover Europe, Africa, Middle East, India and Oceania, with Sales and Marketing teams to continue to be focused on specific geographies, to ensure Nissan products and services remain optimized for customers across all markets.

“Through Nissan NEXT we are transforming the company into a leaner, more agile and profit-focused organization. As always, our people will be the driving force behind our future success and I’m looking forward to bringing such a diverse and talented group of people together,” added Cartier.

“The increased scale and scope of the regional organization will help us to accelerate the roll out of innovations in our vehicles to customers across the new region, and to leverage our strengths across multiple segments to improve business performance.”

AMIEO - Facts and figures

•    Geographical scope of Africa, Middle East, India, Europe (including Russia) and Oceania, covering more than 140 markets
•    Population of around 3.8 billion people
•    29 million vehicles sold in 2019, representing more than 30% of global vehicle sales
•    820,000 Nissan, Datsun and Infiniti sales in 2019
•    Plants in 3 continents
•    Key Nissan models include Qashqai, Navara, Patrol and LEAF – TradeArabia News Service