By Joseph White

DETROIT General Motors Co will consolidate North American sales operations for commercial vehicles, parts and telematics services under a new brand umbrella, GM Envolve, that will compete with Ford Motor Co's Ford Pro unit and others for revenue from business vehicle fleets.

GM executives said the reorganization is aimed at making it easier for commercial fleet customers to negotiate electric and combustion vehicle purchases and sign up for services and software offerings that GM is developing to generate revenue after the vehicle sale.

Previously, commercial customers would get called on by representatives from GM's traditional vehicle brands, its new BrightDrop delivery van unit, a new energy services operation and the OnStar telematics unit, said Steve Hill, GM's vice president for commercial growth strategies.

"We were basically stepping on each other," he said during a briefing for media. Hill said the restructuring is not aimed at reducing staff.

GM is battling with Ford and Stellantis NV for a bigger share of the commercial fleet market.

Ford created its Ford Pro commercial fleet unit in May 2021, and is aiming to increase its annual revenue to $45 billion by 2025, driven in part by software-enabled services. Both Ford and GM say they are leaders in commercial fleet sales, using different definitions of the market.

(Reporting By Joe White)