Ford names Amko Leenarts Director of design Ford of Europe. In his new role, Leenarts is responsible for the exterior and interior design of vehicles, including small cars and crossover utility vehicles, and models for global markets. Leenarts will lead a team of more than 275 employees at Ford Design Studios in Merkenich, Germany, and at the company’s Dunton Technical Centre in Essex, U.K. “It’s a very exciting time for our Design teams. More and more, we’re studying how our customers interact with their vehicles, and we’re looking to create designs that can actually make people’s lives better,” Leenarts said. “We’ll never stop trying to create designs that excite and help people to have an even more emotional connection with our brand.” Leenarts succeeds Joel Piaskowski, who is named director, Global Design, and will lead global car and crossover utility vehicle design from Ford Design Studios in Dearborn, U.S. Piaskowski led the Europe’s design team from 2014, including the development of the all-new Fiesta and upscale Vignale portfolio.
