Hyundai Motor tapped non-Korean executives in annual reshuffle

By Park Jin-hai

Kim Hun-soo Hyundai Motor vice president

Park Gwang-sik Kia Motors vice president

Manfred Fitzgerald Hyundai executive director

Luc Donckerwolke Hyundai executive director

Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) carried out its annual executive-level reshuffle on Monday, promoting a smaller-sized group of 368 officials on a more merit-based shakeup.

That’s 15 percent fewer executives than were promoted a year earlier, signaling that the world’s fifth-largest carmaker is preparing for a dismal global economic outlook, rather than thinking of expansion.

It promoted eight new vice presidents, including Hyundai Vice President Kim Hun-soo and Kia Vice President Park Kwang-sik, and promoted 29 executive directors and 81 directors.

Notable was the tapping of global talents and elevation of R&D personnel.

As the company announced earlier during the launch for the Genesis luxury brand, former Bentley styling chief Luc Donckerwolke has been appointed to the head of design for the Hyundai and Kia brands, succeeding Peter Schreyer. He led car design at Audi, Lamborghini and SEAT. Since 2012, he has worked as chief designer at Bentley.

Donckerwolker, together with Schreyer, will develop innovative designs in order to make the Genesis brand a global success.

Manfred Fitzgerald, ex-Lamborghini director in charge of brand and design, has also joined the company as executive director responsible for building marketing strategies for the Genesis brand to expand its profile in the world luxury car market.

Fitzgerald joined Italian-based Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. in 1999, and took charge of the firm's marketing between 2006 and 2011. Industry watchers said his contributions solidified Lamborghini's presence around the globe.

HMG last year tapped Albert Biermann, chief engineer for BMW's M performance cars, as a vice president in charge of R&D for high-performance vehicles.

Nearly 43 percent of those promoted came from technological R&D, indicating the company’s will to become more aggressive in developing new technologies for environmentally friendly and smart cars next year.

Two female employees were promoted to executive-level positions.

Among the 134 who newly joined the executive-level positions, nearly a quarter of them were promoted regardless of seniority, aiming to inject more creativity and youth into the group’s corporate culture.

"The reshuffle will help the group cement its brand power and market competitiveness next year despite the dismal market outlook," the group stated. "We will make great efforts to become one of the world’s leading carmakers, providing quality beyond our customers' expectations."