Retirement, Departure Sets Off Executive Shuffle at General Motors

The retirement of Alan Batey, executive vice president of North America, and the departure of Alicia Boler Davis, executive vice president of global manufacturing, to pursue other opportunities has set off a chain reaction of leadership maneuvering at General Motors Co.
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Barry Engle (top left) has taken over as executive vice president of North America for GM, replacing Alan Batey (top right), who is retiring. Gerald Johnson (bottom left) will replace the departing Alicia Boler Davis (bottom right) as executive vice president of global manufacturing. // Photos courtesy of General Motors Co.

The retirement of Alan Batey, executive vice president of North America, and the departure of Alicia Boler Davis, executive vice president of global manufacturing, to pursue other opportunities has set off a chain reaction of leadership maneuvering at General Motors Co.

Barry Engle, currently executive vice president and president of GM International, will replace Batey. Julian Blissett, currently GM-SAIC executive vice president in China, will take over for Engle.

Gerald Johnson, currently vice president of North American manufacturing and labor relations, will replace Davis. The replacement for Johnson is pending.

Engle joined GM as executive vice president and president, South America, in September 2015 after being a Chrysler Plymouth dealer, 13 years as a Ford Motor Co. executive, CEO of New Holland Agricultural Equipment, CEO of the THINK electric vehicle start up, and CEO of Agility Fuel Systems.

“As our company continues to streamline operations, simplify our systems and refine our global go-to-market strategies, I see Barry as the perfect leader to continue our transformation in each of these markets,” says Mary Barra, chairman and CEO of GM. “Alan and his team have achieved record financial performance and created a customer-focused foundation, and we greatly appreciate what he has contributed to GM over his almost 40 years of service across the globe.”

Prior to his position leading GM’s North American manufacturing, Johnson served as vice president of operational excellence, where he worked to develop and execute an enterprise-wide cultural transformation with a focus on process discipline, continuous improvement and waste elimination. Under his leadership, a team of Lean Six Sigma experts developed a training initiative and coached employees in projects that improved the company’s operations efficiency.

“Gerald’s passion for the business, strong leadership skills and extensive manufacturing and labor experience will help in our efforts to continue to transform the company, supporting both the core business and future of mobility,” says Barra. “I’d like to thank Alicia for her 25 years of dedicated service to GM and for her leadership in driving both business results and culture change.”