Kodak creating new business divisions
For every season of Kodak, there is a different way of organizing the company.
In the early 1990s, the iconic Rochester company's reach was across businesses from photography and photocopiers to vitamins. And it had a Consumer Imaging Segment, a Commercial Imaging Segment, a Health division, and a Chemicals division.
In 2010, focused just on imaging, it had three divisions: the Consumer Digital Imaging Group overseeing everything from digital cameras and desktop inkjet printers to photo kiosks at stores; Graphic Communications Group. overseeing its digital printing presses and the supplies and services that go along with; and Film, Photofinishing and Entertainment Group of motion picture and photographic film.
And effective Jan. 1, 2015, the two business divisions at print-centric Eastman Kodak Co. has now will be shuffled and re-dealt into five.
Each will focus on a specific market, and be headed by a different executive. All five will report directly to CEO Jeff Clarke.
In a memo to company employees Thursday announcing the changes, Clarke said the aim is to "establish a faster-moving, more competitive and more entrepreneurial organization ... one that has been designed to sharpen our focus on performance and predictability by creating clearer accountability for business results."
The five are:
•Print Systems, which will handle Kodak's printing plate, toner, and commercial print services work. Heading it will be Brad Kruchten, who most recently was president of its graphics, entertainment and commercial film business division.
•Enterprise Inkjet Systems, which will be the home of Kodak's inkjet-related operations such as its Prosper presses, as well as its Versamark line. Overseeing that will be Philip Cullimore, who previously oversaw Kodak's business in the European, African, and Middle Eastern regions.
•Micro 3D Printing and Packaging, which includes Kodak's packaging printing Flexcel NX product line and its touch sensor work. Cullimore will oversee this temporarily as Kodak looks for a permanent head.
•Software and Solutions, which includes Kodak's brand protection offerings, its workflow software and services, and its various business services. It also will have primary responsibility with commercializing Kodak's R&D discoveries. Overseeing it will be Eric-Yves Mahe, who started with the company in April as director of sales strategy and operations.
•Consumer and Film, which is the home of Kodak's consumer inkjet inks, its film-related chemicals and its brand licensing efforts. Overseeing it will be Steven Overman, who also is the company's chief marketing officer.
Currently, Kodak is two divisions: Graphics, Entertainment & Commercial Films, headed by Kruchten; and Digital Printing & Enterprise, overseen by 17-year Kodak veteran Douglas Edwards. Edwards is leaving the company at the end of the year, which is also when the new structure takes place.
And as the company told employees in the memo, "As we eliminate duplication and complexity, we will make some reductions in the workforce. At the same time, we will create some new positions that are required to achieve our plans for growth. Details are still being finalized, and we will do everything we can to keep you all informed as we move forward."
According to Kodak, each of the five divisions will be responsible for much of its own marketing and specific sales teams, though there will be cross-division management of big accounts.
Kodak also said it was realigning its four key geographic regions into two: Europe, the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand being one, overseen by John O'Grady, who currently is managing director of the company's U.S. and Canada region; and Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa being the other, with it being overseen by Lois Lebegue, who currently is managing director of the company's Asia Pacific region and is based out of China.
MDANEMAN@DemocratandChronicle.com