STEPPING UP : Olabisi Boyle Assumes Office as Senior Vice President, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy at Hyundai Motor North America
4 min readVice President, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy at Hyundai Motor North America (HMNA), Olabisi Boyle, takes up a new role this January as she moves up the corporate ladder as Senior Vice President, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy at HMNA.
In her new role as Senior Vice President, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy for HMNA, Boyle will continue to oversee the strategic direction of Hyundai’s U.S. vehicle lineup and lead long-range planning, market research, business analytics, and advanced pricing.
She will also lead Hyundai’s U.S. mobility strategy, connected car technology, and future innovations.
Boyle, who was named a 2023 Automotive News All-Star, joined Hyundai on 10 August 2020 from Visa, where she was the Vice President of Connected Commerce, leading the Internet of Things, Tap-to-Phone, and Acceptance Cloud payment products.
Prior to her Connected Commerce position, she was the Vice President of IoT and Connected Car, where she was responsible for expanding Visa’s in-car payment technology.
Boyle has 22 years of automotive industry experience, including various engineering, product strategy and manufacturing leadership roles at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Ford Motor Company.
At Chrysler, she was the Director of Engineering Planning and Technical Cost Reduction and prior to that was the Chief Engineer for Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan Minivans.
Boyle has been recognised for her career accomplishments and was selected to the San Francisco Business Times’ 2020 Most Influential Women in the Bay Area list and was the recipient of the 2018 Women in Payments Innovation Award.
She is an advisory board member for the Los Angeles Auto Show (AutoMobility LA) and was elected as co-chair and board member of the Chrysler African American Network. Boyle also served as a board member of the Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program (DAPCEP).
Boyle has a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Columbia University, a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Fordham University and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Columbia University.
AUTO REPORT AFRICA recalls that HMNA , Wednesday, 20 December 2023, announced promotions and responsibility changes to several leaders of the HMNA executive team. The appointments, according to the company, take effect from Jan. 1, 2024.
“I’m very proud of the leadership team at Hyundai Motor North America without whom our stellar results this year would not be possible,” President and Global COO, Hyundai Motor Company and president and CEO, Hyundai Motor North America, José Muñoz, had said.
“I’m also proud to empower these leaders with greater responsibility in elevated roles as Hyundai’s business continues to grow and our vehicles continue to evolve. These executives bring exceptional leadership skills and a wealth of experience to these roles. I know their continued success will help Hyundai win in 2024 and beyond.”
Also promoted to senior vice president, chief legal and compliance officer for HMNA is Jason Erb. In this role, Erb will continue to be responsible for all legal matters across the region. This includes product liability, safety and warranty, intellectual property, risk management, cyber security, dealer franchise, and human resources, among other responsibilities. He was previously vice president and chief legal officer for HMNA and has been with Hyundai for over 20 years.
Carlos Servin expands his responsibilities and is now the senior vice president, global profit optimization and global manufacturing office for the Hyundai Motor Company COO Office. Servin has been senior vice president, global profit optimization since September 2022. He joined the organization in 2021 to support financial functions optimizing cost. His background includes experience in finance and cost optimization with other automotive companies.
Cole Stutz is promoted to chief safety officer and vice president of the Hyundai North America Safety Office. In this role, Sutz will lead and oversee all safety endeavors, including management and compliance with safety regulations for North America. He was previously executive director for vehicle safety investigations and has been with Hyundai since 2015.
Chris Susock is promoted to president and CEO of Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA). He was previously COO and senior vice president at HMMA since September 2022. He joined HMMA in 2004 to lead the facilitation, organizational, and manufacturing process development for the plant’s start up in early 2005.
All the newly-promoted executives report to Muñoz.
Additionally, Euisung (Ernie) Kim is promoted to executive vice president and head of quality division, Hyundai Motor Group. Kim has served as HMMA’s president and CEO since January 2021. In July of 2023, Kim was also appointed to serve as the global manufacturing officer supporting the Global COO office, expanding his management responsibility to include automotive production in Europe, India, and Brazil. Prior to his current roles, Kim served in a variety of leadership positions with both Hyundai and Kia in the areas of customer service and quality innovation. In his new role, Kim will report to Brian Latouf, Hyundai Motor Group president and global chief safety and quality officer.
Other promotions include June Lim, executive coordinator for marketing and communications at HMNA, Sungil Kimpromoted to vice president, head of purchasing at HMMA and at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, Daniel Park is promoted to chief administrative officer.
Finally, Hyundai Motor America realigned responsibilities in the national sales organization. This change is geared towards optimizing sales efforts and addressing the distinctive demands of each region throughout the nation.
Bob Kim will take on the new role of vice president, east sales and oversee and lead the Central, Southern, Mid-Atlantic and Eastern regions.
Michael Orange has been appointed vice president, west sales and vehicle operations. Orange will oversee and lead the Western, Mountain and South Central regions, along with fleet distribution.
Both Kim and Orange will report to Randy Parker, CEO, Hyundai Motor America.