From a press release:

KAWASAKI MOTORS CORP., U.S.A. ANNOUNCES MAJOR REORGANIZATION OF ITS OPERATIONS

Company officials cite need to adapt new, more nimble focus in order to grow its consumer products business even further in years ahead.

IRVINE, Calif. (May 7, 2004)—Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (KMC), recognizing the competitive environment in which it markets its motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, personal watercraft, and utility vehicles, today announced a reorganization of the way its consumer products business will be operated.

Leaning heavily on a streamlined approach to increasing productivity, the company will focus on strengthening its competitive position in both the short and long term. This will primarily be accomplished through the integration of functions that have operated independently, rather than in a synergistic mode that shortens many of the extended lines of communication.

According to Steve Hamada, president, the new structure “will increase the efficiency and improve coordination of all aspects of our internal operations.”

Hamada said the new organization will become effective May 10, and will “prepare KMC to better meet our current and future business needs.”

Among the new directions cited by Hamada is a reduction in the lines of communication that report to the president’s office, allowing for more involvement with the company’s programs and policies, while also improving responsiveness to the needs of Kawasaki’s dealers and consumers.

“It is very important that any organizational changes offer a tangible benefit to our dealer network, and to Kawasaki’s retail purchasers,” said Hamada.

“This new approach to our internal operations will significantly improve our abilities to rapidly respond to market changes and ultimately achieve greater efficiencies and profitability.”

KMC will reduce the numbers of operating divisions and layers of management that have grown broader as the company’s product categories have expanded and it has continued to experience upwards growth

Currently, twelve separate operational groups report to the office of the president. In the newly restructured look effective next week, that number will be reduced to seven. Similar consolidations will occur in middle management areas that will compliment the changes being made at other organizational levels.

Among the key adjustments in the reporting structure will be the combining of both sales and marketing into a single, blended operational group, and the consolidation of several product-related functions underneath a product operations group.

“We’ve addressed all of the functional areas that can help us to grow and achieve our targets over the next several years,” said Hamada. “This is an opportunity for KMC to move the bar of accomplishment and one from which we are anticipating great results,” he concluded.

Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A., (KMC) markets and sells at wholesale Kawasaki motorcycles, ATVs, personal watercraft, utility vehicles, power products and general purpose engines. These product lines are sold through a network of more than 1,500 independent retailers. KMC and its affiliates employ nearly 2,400 people in the United States, with approximately 400 of them located at the Irvine, Calif. headquarters.

Kawasaki’s tagline, “Let the good times roll™”, is recognized worldwide and the brand is aggressively carrying its heritage of power, performance, leading-edge design and exhilaration into the 21st century. Information about Kawasaki’s complete line of recreational products and Kawasaki affiliates can be found on the Internet at www.kawasaki.com.