• Brandweek, Tuesday, January 23, 2007 1:15 PM

In a memo to Coca-Cola Co. employees yesterday, CEO Neville Isdell announced that all marketing, strategy and innovation heads will report to newly appointed COO Muhtar Kent. That means, in effect, that Mary Minnick will not be replaced when she leaves at the end of February.

Marc Mathieu, who was head of Coke's global core brands, will add marketing responsibilities for noncarbonated global brands effective March 1. Others in the marketing team will report to Mathieu instead of Minnick, except for the research & development and the strategy groups. Those, headed by chief innovation officer Danny Strickland and John Murphy, respectively, each now report directly to Isdell. They had reported to Minnick.

"We believe that the processes, systems and routines established will ensure an effective connection between R&D and marketing," Isdell says.

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