Marissa West leaves GM after 8 months as North American president

General Motors said Marissa West, who became its North American president in January, has left the automaker.

Rory Harvey, West's predecessor who is now president of global markets, takes over day-to-day management of North America effective immediately, the automaker said Aug. 9.

"Marissa West, president of North America, has decided to leave GM after more than 20 years with the company," GM spokesperson Kevin Kelly said in a statement. "She held numerous leadership roles in engineering, product, and sales in the U.S. and Canada. We are grateful for all of her contributions and wish her the best in her next chapter."

It’s the third change atop GM’s North American operations in about 14 months. Harvey led the region from June 2023 through December, when he was promoted again.

GM’s North American region posted record second-quarter earnings, with pretax profit rising 39 percent to $4.4 billion on revenue of $40.7 billion. Strong sales of pickups and SUVs also contributed to a 14 percent bump in global net income.

“I don’t see how this could have been related to poor North American results, because there are not poor North American results,” said David Whiston, a U.S. autos equity analyst with Morningstar Research Services.

“With Marissa leaving, the replacement is someone who’s already had the role,” Whiston said of Harvey. “He knows that market well. I think that my only concern would be: Is he getting stretched too thin?”

Additionally, GM said Duncan Aldred, vice president of global Buick-GMC, will become vice president of commercial growth strategies and operations as of Sept. 1, reporting to Harvey. Jaclyn McQuaid, president of GM Europe, will succeed Aldred at Buick-GMC.

"GM is reducing the complexity of our organization to better integrate global markets, move faster, and serve customers around the world," Kelly's statement said. "The structural changes we are making will help modernize our end-to-end customer experience and create growth opportunities across our products and services."

West, 42, was the first woman to lead GM's largest and most profitable region. In her two decades at the automaker, West also was president of GM Canada, executive chief engineer for GM's global midsize truck and medium-duty truck programs, and chief engineer of the GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado heavy-duty pickup redesigns that launched in 2019.

"The timeline was a surprise to me," she told Automotive News in April of her promotion to North American president. "It was an honor to be even considered for it."

West was the fourth generation of her family to work at GM, following her father, both grandfathers, a grandmother and a great-grandfather. She said she had envisioned a career at the automaker, adding, “I was always very interested in the product, always very interested in the company.”

Harvey became president of global markets, a new role that involves working with regional teams abroad on strategy and operations, at the same time West took charge of North America.

GM leaders last month said they are working to restructure the automaker’s flagging China business to address price competition and declining share. And GM is making new efforts at selling in Europe, including with Cadillac’s electric vehicles.

"The automotive industry has not gone through a transition like it's going through today certainly in my lifetime," Harvey told Automotive News at the NADA Show in February. "We don't have a road map as to how things are going to play out going forward. There is going to be a degree of volatility as we go through the transition. And I think having a global oversight so that we can bring products to market in a consistent way, products to market in a faster way ... brings some benefits."

Andy Guelcher, chairman of the Chevrolet National Dealer Council, told Automotive News that Harvey and senior leaders revealed on an Aug. 9 call that West had decided to step down and Harvey again would lead North America.

“Very surprised, and kind of shocked, to be quite honest with you,” said Guelcher, dealer principal of Mohawk Chevrolet in Ballston Spa, N.Y., adding that West had been doing a good job thus far working with dealers.

“The thing that was most impressive about her was that she was so engaged,” he said.

Harvey is “extremely well-versed,” Guelcher said. “If you’re going to ask for a transition, this is about probably the best the dealers could ask for.”

Aldred’s new role includes oversight of the fleet and commercial division called GM Envolve; GM Energy; retail operations; Customer Care and Aftersales; digital sales and service; and OnStar connectivity and safety service.

Aldred was selected as an Automotive News All-Star in 2023 and 2016 for his work leading Buick and GMC. He was an Automotive News Rising Star in 2015.

"Great brands are built with consistency, with repetition," Aldred said at the Detroit auto show last September. "We're constantly pushing the boundaries of what it can be."

McQuaid has been president of GM Europe since November 2022. She previously was executive chief engineer for full-size trucks.

“We are positioning ourselves in Europe as an electric high performer and a premium brand with American roots,” McQuaid told Automotive News affiliate Automobilwoche in May.

"We're not like many other electric brands. We want to offer the car to people who want to express their personality with it," she said. "Our customers are modern people who love performance and love technology."

Bo Mandal, chairman of the Buick-GMC National Dealer Council, said Aldred’s promotion is “bittersweet” after leadership roles with both brands for a decade.

“He’s been an enormous part of Buick-GMC’s growth,” Mandal said, adding that he briefly spoke to McQuaid, who seemed eager and excited to lead the brands.

Aldred’s new role “is very important to have retail dealer relations experiences, not only in sales but in CCA,” said Mandal, CEO of Mandal Automotive Group in Biloxi, Miss. “He clearly has the pedigree in his work over the last several decades to be able to lead that.”