Much as we car enthusiasts admire Mazda for its brave designs and outstanding value, it's fallen to veteran auto critic Jerry Flint to remind us that the company failed to show any sales growth for over a decade. Mazda's problem, he argues, is rooted in its past, when the company tried to compete directly against Toyota in Japan. As quoted by Autoblog, Flint suggested that "Mazda's small size, still growing dealership network, and leadership shuffle have hampered its growth." Apparently this hasn't bothered parent company Ford, which not long ago brought Mazda's president Mark Fields back to Detroit and appointed him executive vice president, Ford Motor Company, and president, The Americas. And Fields must certainly have been impressed by the work of Moray Callum, who was general manager of Mazda's design division. Callum has just been appointed Ford's design director for cars. Perhaps Mazda is Ford's secret training ground.