Business Wire — NASHVILLE, Tenn. In order to maintain momentum for its Nissan NEXT transformation plan, establish a stronger company, and swiftly achieve the future vision defined in Nissan Ambition 2030, Nissan is making changes to the management team for North America.
Marketing & Sales, Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management, Research and Development (R&D), 4R & Battery Business, and Legal, Sustainability & External Affairs are the areas with the new leadership beginning on April 1.
Nissan & INFINITI, US & Canada, has named Jeff Pope, group vice president, INFINITI Americas, division vice president, Dealer Network Development & Customer Quality. David Kershaw, who decided to leave Nissan, is replaced by him. Throughout his 32 years with Nissan, Kershaw had a range of positions, his most recent being a crucial leadership position as Nissan modernized its U.S. retail operation.
Vice President of Aftersales, U.S., Kim Less formerly served as Director of Aftersales Supply Chain Management (SCM). Michael Soutter is replaced by Less in his new role as corporate vice president of global aftersales for Nissan Motor Company, Japan.
Pope and Less will answer to Mike Colleran, senior vice president of U.S. marketing and sales at Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (NML) and corporate vice president.
Craig Keeys is moved to group vice president, INFINITI Americas, and is replaced as regional vice president, Nissan Midwest Region, by Tiago Castro, senior director, Sales & Marketing, Nissan Brazil. Castro will be under the direction of Nissan U.S. Sales & Regional Operations division vice president Judy Wheeler. His home base will be Aurora, Illinois.
Nissan Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant promotes David Sliger, who served as interim manager of the company’s manufacturing operations, to vice president, Manufacturing. Sliger will answer to David Johnson, Nissan North America’s senior vice president of manufacturing and supply chain management.
Yasuhiro Azuma, who formerly served as vice president of vehicle program engineering and chief vehicle engineer for the Infiniti segment of R&D, NML, has been promoted to that position.
The two men will answer to Chris Reed, the region’s senior vice president of R&D for Nissan Americas.
As president of 4R Energy, a newly created position, Kent O’Hara, senior vice president of global aftersales at Nissan Motor Company, Japan, returns to the United States. The rapidly expanding commercial opportunity to reuse, resell, refabricate, and recycle electric vehicle batteries will fall within O’Hara’s purview. This initiative will increase Nissan’s EV business’ overall competitiveness and open up new income opportunities for the company. He will answer to Nissan Americas Chairman Jeremie Papin.
Jason Menges is promoted to vice president and general counsel, Legal, North America from director and assistant general counsel, Regulatory and Product Safety. Andrew Tavi, regional senior vice president, Legal, Sustainability & External Affairs, Nissan Americas, will be Menges’ primary point of contact.