fiat

Agnelli's grandson Gianni Agnelli was Fiat chairman from 1966 until his death on January 24, 2003. However, from 1996, he only served as an "honorary" chairman, while the chairman was Cesare Romiti. After their removal, Paolo Fresco served as chairman and Paolo Cantarella as CEO. Umberto Agnelli then took over as chairman from 2002 to 2004. After Umberto Agnelli's death on May 28, 2004, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo was named chairman, but Agnelli heir John Elkann became vice chairman at age 28 and other family members are on the board. At this point, CEO Giuseppe Morchio immediately offered his resignation. Sergio Marchionne was named to replace him on June 1, 2004. The group's activities were initially focused on the industrial production of cars, industrial and agricultural vehicles. Over time it has diversified into many other fields, and the group now has activities in a wide range of sectors in industry and financial services. It is Italy's largest industrial concern. It also has significant worldwide operations, operating in 61 countries with 1,063 companies that employ over 223,000 people, 111,000 of whom are outside Italy. Fiat Group is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy, with a range of cars including the Fiat Panda, Punto, Stilo, Idea, Croma, Ulysse and Doblò. Car companies are run by Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A, Ferrari S.p.A. and Maserati S.p.A.. Today automobile group runs well known firms like Lancia Automobiles S.p.A, Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A, Abarth & C. S.p.A., Fiat Automobiles S.p.A, IVECO S.p.A., and Maserati S.p.A.. Ferrari S.p.A. is owned by the Fiat Group, but is run autonomously. Light automobile sales accounted for 46.8% of total revenues during fiscal 2004 (3.2% of which is from Ferrari). The European Car of the Year award, Europe's premier automotive trophy for the past 40 years, has been awarded eleven times to the Fiat Group, more than any other manufacturer. Fiat Group owns CNH Global (which includes Case Construction, Case IH, Flexi-Coil, Kobelco, New Holland, New Holland Construction, and Steyr); and Fiat-Hitachi Construction. CNH is the second largest agricultural equipment manufacturer in the world after Deere & Company. It is also the third largest producer of construction equipment after Caterpillar Inc. and Komatsu. CNH accounts for 20.9% of revenues.3 CNH is the most prized company inside Fiat because it has driven growth and is very profitable. It also shows great promise for growth in third-world markets.

Commercial vehicles (Iveco and Seddon Atkinson), buses (Iveco and Irisbus) and firefighting vehicles (Camiva, Iveco and Magirus). For information on their military vehicles, see Ariete.
On 17 April 2007 "Fiat Veicoli Commerciali" was rebranded as "Fiat Professional"22.
Some of Fiat's Light Commercial Vehicle products include; Fiat Ducato, Fiat Scudo and Fiat Doblò Cargo. See Fiat Professional for more details on Fiat's Light Commercial Vehicle Products.

Giovanni Agnelli founded Fiat in 1899 with several investors and led the company until his death in 1945, while Vittorio Valletta administered the day-to-day activities of the company. In 1903, Fiat produced its first truck.8 In 1908, the first Fiat was exported to the US.9 That same year, the first Fiat aircraft engine was produced. Also around the same time, Fiat taxis became somewhat popular in Europe.10 By 1910, Fiat was the largest automotive company in Italy — a position it has retained since. That same year, a plant licensed to produce Fiats in Poughkeepsie, NY, made its first car. This was before the introduction of Ford's assembly line in 1913. Owning a Fiat at that time was a sign of distinction. A Fiat sold in the US cost between $3,600 and $8,600 ($73,909 to $176,561 today). Compare this to the $825 ($17,000 today) Henry Ford charged for his first Model Ts in 1908.11 However, upon the entry of the US into World War I in 1917, the factory was shut down as US regulations became too burdensome. At the same time, Fiat had to devote all of its factories to supplying the Allies, producing aircraft, engines, machine guns, trucks, and ambulances. After the war, Fiat introduced its first tractor.12 By the early 1920s, Fiat had a market share in Italy of 80%.13 In 1921, workers seized Fiat's plants and hoisted the red flag of communism over them. Mr. Agnelli responded by quitting the company, retiring to private life, and letting the workers try to run the company. Shortly afterward, 3,000 of them walked to his office and asked him to return to the helm — -a request to which he reluctantly agreed. In 1922, Fiat began to build the famous Lingotto car factory — the largest in Europe up to that time — which opened in 1923. It was the first Fiat factory to use assembly lines. Fiat made military machinery and vehicles during World War II for the Italian Army and Air Force and later for the Germans. Fiat made obsolete fighter aircraft like the biplane CR 42, which was one of the most common Italian aircraft used along with the Savoia-Marchetti, and also made light tanks and armored vehicles. These were weak compared to some of the German and Soviet counterparts, but were still used often. The best Fiat aircraft was the G 55 fighter but arrived too late and in too few numbers. In 1945 — the year Hitler's ally Mussolini was overthrown as leader of Italy - the Italian Committee of National Liberation removed the Agnelli family from leadership roles in Fiat because of its ties to Mussolini's government. These were not returned until 1963, when Giovanni's grandson, Gianni took over as general manager until 1966 and as chairman until 1996.

Among Gianni's first steps after he gained control of Fiat was a massive reorganization of the company management, which had previously been highly centralized, with almost no provision for the delegation of authority and decision-making power. Such a system had worked effectively enough in the past but lacked the responsiveness and flexibility made necessary by Fiat's steady expansion and the growth of its international operations in the 1960's. The company was reorganized on a product-line basis, with two main product groups — one for passenger cars, the other for trucks and tractors — and a number of semi-independent division and subsidiaries. Top management, freed from responsibility for day-by-day operations of the company, was able to devote its efforts to more far-reaching goals. In 1967, Fiat made its first acquisition when it purchased Autobianchi. Then, in 1969, it purchased controlling interests in Ferrari and Lancia. According to Newsweek in 1968, Fiat was "the most dynamic automaker in Europe . . . [and] may come closest to challenging the worldwide supremacy of Detroit." In 1967 Fiat, with sales amounting to $1.7 billion, outstripped Volkswagen, its main European competitor; in 1968 Fiat produced some 1,750,000 vehicles while its sales volume climbed to $2.1 billion ($11.5 billion today). At the time, Fiat was a conglomerate, owning Alitalia Airlines, toll highways, typewriter and office machine manufacturer, electronics and electrical equipment firms, a paint company, a civil engineering firm, and an international construction company. That same year, Fiat acquired Citroën — one of France's three major automakers at the time. However, in 1976, it sold the company. Following up on an agreement that Valetta had made with Soviet officials in 1966, Agnelli constructed the AvtoVAZ plant in the new city of Togliattigrad on the Volga that went into operation in 1970 - producing a localised version of the Fiat 124 - the infamous Lada. On his initiative, Fiat automobile and truck plants were also constructed in industrial centers of Yugoslavia, Poland, Bulgaria, and Romania. In 1979, the company became a holding company when it spun off its various businesses into autonomous companies, one of them being Fiat Auto. That same year, sales reached an all-time high in the United States, corresponding to the Iranian Oil Crisis. However, when gas prices fell again after 1981, Americans began purchasing sport utility vehicles, minivans and pickup trucks in larger numbers (marking a departure from their past preference for large cars). Also, Japanese automakers had been taking an ever-larger share of the car market, increasing at more than half a percent a year. Thus, in 1984, Fiat and Lancia withdrew from the American market. In 1989, it did the same in the Australian market.
In 1986, Fiat acquired Alfa Romeo from the Italian government. In 1992, two top corporate officials in the Fiat Group were arrested for political corruption.15 A year later, Fiat acquired Maserati. In 1995 Alfa Romeo exited the US market. Maserati re-entered the US market under Fiat in 2002. Since then, Maserati sales there have been increasing briskly.Paolo Fresco became chairman of Fiat in 1998 with the hope that the veteran of General Electric would bring more emphasis on shareholder value to Fiat. By the time he took power, Fiat's market share in Italy had fallen to 41%16 from around 62% in 1984.17 However, a Jack Welch-like management style would be much harsher than that used by the Italians (e.g., precarious versus lifetime employment). Instead, Fresco focused on offering more incentives for good performance, including compensation using stock options for top and middle management.
However,his efforts were frustrated by union objections. Unions insisted that pay raises be set by length of tenure, rather than performance. Another conflict was over his preference for informality (the founder, Giovanni Agnelli, used to be a cavalry officer). He often referred to other managers by their first name, although company tradition obliged one to refer to others using their titles (e.g., "Chairman Fresco"). The CEO of the company, Managing Director Paolo Cantarella, ran the day-to-day affairs of the company, while Fresco determined company strategy and especially acted as a negotiator for the company. In fact, many speculated the main reason he was chosen for the job was to sell Fiat Auto (although Fresco fervently denied it).18 In 1999, Fiat formed CNH Global by merging New Holland NV and Case Corporation.
Over time, most automotive companies around the world have become holding companies of foreign as well as domestic competitors. For example, the U.S. company General Motors owned a controlling interest in Sweden's Saab Automobile and, until recently, in Japan's Isuzu. Fresco signed a joint-venture agreement in 2000 under which GM acquired a stake in Fiat. This made it appear as if Fiat was next, although GM has made joint ventures with other companies (such as Toyota) without acquiring them. Nevertheless, Fiat did not see the GM partnership as a threat, rather as an opportunity to off-load its automotive business. The agreement with GM included a put option, which held that Fiat would have the right to sell GM its auto division after four years at fair market value. If GM balked, it would be forced to pay a penalty of $2 billion. When Fiat tried to sell GM the company, GM chose the penalty. On May 13, 2005 GM and Fiat officially dissolved their agreement, and Fiat is now courting Ford.19 The current CEO views alliances such as these as the deciding factor of the future success of Fiat.
As part of the recent divestitures, in 2003 Fiat shed its insurance sector, which it was operating through Toro Assicurazioni to the DeAgostini Group. In the same year, Fiat sold its aviation business, FiatAvio to Avio Holding. In February 2004, the company sold its interest in Fiat Engineering, as well as its stake in Edison.
Fiat faces a multitude of threats, including rising steel prices (up 68% between January and October 2004),20 a strong Euro, and increased competition from Japanese and Korean car manufacturers in Europe. Although the light-vehicle market share of Japanese and Korean automakers in Europe is less than in the US (12.5% and 3.9%, respectively versus 30% and 3.9% in the US), it has been increasing steadily at about a half a percent a year. Fiat has drawn criticism within New Zealand for an advert they ran in Italy, which a New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman described as "culturally insensitive and inappropriate". The advert showed women performing the haka beside the new Fiat car and crowd noise is in the background to simulate the atmosphere in an All Blacks rugby match. As the haka is finished a woman drives away in the Fiat car and a boy in the back of the car pokes out his tongue, which is the action used to finish the haka. Nonetheless, Sergio Marchionne has begun to impress investors since taking over as CEO in June, 2004. Losses have fallen steadily since 2002, and Q4 of FY2005 saw its first profit in 17 quarters, and had a profit of 196M Euros for the first 9 months of FY2006.22 Mr. Marchionne has succeeded more than Fresco in taking an axe to Fiat's bloated managerial bureaucracy and changing its tone to a focus on markets and profits. (Mr. Marchionne was raised in Canada by Italian parents.) While the charismatic chairman, the well-connected Luca di Montezemolo, dealt with politicians and unions, Marchionne rebuilt the car business. The success of the Grande Punto model has in large part been responsible for the turnaround in Fiat's fortunes.Fiat has formed a joint venture with India's TATA motors and has started its second innings with a force.

1970's DECADE	1980's DECADE	1990's DECADE	2000's DECADE
127	PANDA	CINQUECENTO	Nuova PANDA
126	ARGENTA	PUNTO	IDEA
132	REGATA	COUPE'	STILO
X1/9	UNO	ULYSSE	Nuova BRAVO
131	CROMA	BARCHETTA	LINEA
133	TIPO	BRAVO / BRAVA	GRANDE PUNTO
RITMO		MAREA	NUOVA CROMA
		PALIO	SEDICI
		SIENA	500
		MULTIPLA	ALBEA
		STRADA
		PERLA
		SEICENTO
		TEMPRA