GM has confirmed the appointment of Raymond Bierzynski as Executive Vice President of SAIC-GM-Wuling, GM China’s manufacturing joint venture with SAIC and Wuling Motors. Bierzynski will be based at SAIC-GM-Wuling’s headquarters in Liuzhou, Guangxi, and will continue to report to Bob Socia, President, GM China, and Chief Country Operations officer, China, India and ASEAN.
Based in Shanghai, Bierzynski had most recently served as Executive Director of Electrification Strategy for GM China since 1 June 2011, with responsibility for coordinating and accelerating the commercialisation of electrification technologies in the country. His replacement will be announced by GM at a later date. Prior to this task, he served in leadership roles in China as president of the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) from 2004 to 2007, and vice president of GM Asia Pacific and GM executive director of China Engineering from 2007 to 2009.
Socia commented: “Ray brings a wealth of experience to his new role. His demonstrated leadership, extensive background in critical industry functions and experience working with our joint-venture partners in China made him an ideal choice for this important position.”
Bierzynski succeeds Karl Slym who decided to leave the joint venture after less than a year in the EVP position to join Tata Motors as Managing Director. Slym previously had a 17-year career with GM, heading the OEM’s India operations from 2007 until 2011 when he took over as EVP and board member at SAIC-GM-Wuling. Slym took up his new position on 1 October and leads all operations of Tata Motors in India and international markets including South Korea, Thailand, Spain, Indonesia and South Africa.
Bierzynski joins SAIC-GM-Wuling at an increasingly challenging time, reflecting changing market and business positions for the mini-vehicle joint venture. According to a Reuters report, domestic sales of the joint-venture’s micro-vans have showed recent signs of weakness, driving a search for increased business outside China. Emphasising his previous experience in the Asia-Pacific region, Bierzynski was quoted as saying in an interview with the news agency: “I am familiar with the Indian market from my previous role… I don’t have as steep a learning curve relative to the types of products needed in India and the (Asia-Pacific) market in general.”
In September 2012, GM and its joint ventures sold a monthly record of 244,266 vehicles in China, up 1.7% year-on-year and 10.5% month-on-month. During the first nine months of 2012, sales increased 10.0% to a record 2,081,812 units. SAIC-GM-Wuling’s sales alone in China also set a September record, increasing 0.4% to 119,510 units. In the January-September 2012 period, the joint venture’s domestic sales were up 13.7%, to 1,070,131 units.
In mid-September 2012, GM announced that the President of GM China, Kevin Wale, would retire at the end of October. Wale, who also served as Chief Country Operations Officer, China, India and ASEAN, became President and Managing Director of the GM China Group in 2005. His role was taken over by Socia, previously GM Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, as of 1 October. The OEM has subsequently selected Kim Brycz to fill in as interim Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, while a permanent replacement is sought.
