LOS ANGELES — Genesis Motor North America CEO Mark Del Rosso is leaving the automaker after a three-month absence for a personal matter.
Genesis informed Automotive News about Del Rosso’s departure Monday in an e-mailed statement.
At the same time, Genesis is reviving the position of chief operating officer and has named Hyundai Motor Mexico CEO Claudia Marquez to the new post. Marquez will lead the strategy and execution of sales, after sales, marketing and growth strategies for Genesis, the company said in a separate statement.
Marquez will report to Hyundai Motor North America CEO Jose Muñoz, who has been serving as interim Genesis CEO and will continue to hold that title.
The changes are effective Oct. 1, Genesis said.
“Claudia is a strong leader that has implemented effective strategies for growing automotive brands throughout her career,” Muñoz said in the release. “As an ambitious brand with a bold vision, we are pleased to have Claudia onboard to lead Genesis through its next phase of growth.”
Del Rosso took a leave of absence beginning July 1 during a time of rapid expansion for the upstart luxury automaker, which has introduced new models and tripled sales in August compared to the previous year.
“Under Mark’s leadership, Genesis achieved all-time record sales and elevated levels of customer satisfaction,” Genesis said in the separate statement. “We thank Mark for his leadership in building the Genesis Brand and wish him well.”
When Del Rosso joined Genesis in October 2019, the Korean automaker touted his experience in the luxury market with such brands as Audi, Bentley and Lexus. Earlier that year, Del Rosso had stepped down as president of Audio of America less than six months into the job.
Marquez also has extensive experience in the luxury market at BMW Group Mexico, where she held several positions over a 12-year period. Prior to joining Hyundai in November 2019, Marquez had executive positions at Nissan North America, including at the Infiniti brand. Her tenure at Nissan overlapped with Muñoz, who was a top Nissan North America executive.
“Genesis is an ambitious brand, putting the customer at the forefront of everything we do,” Marquez said in a statement. “With our growing product lineup, our foray into electrification, and a growing network of retailers and standalone facilities in communities across the region, there is no better time to be joining the Genesis brand.”
Genesis previously had a COO position with Erwin Raphael, who held the posts of executive director Genesis Motor America from 2016 to 2019 and then COO from early 2019 to early 2020.
Marquez was honored in the 2020 edition of Automotive News‘ Leading Women awards program. She told Automotive News that her years as a student at a German-language school led her to BMW as they established operations in Mexico more than 20 years ago.