Gerasimos (Gerry) Dorizas has been appointed the new chairman and managing director of GM Holden.

A veteran of the global automotive industry, Mr Dorizas is tasked with overseeing the closure of Holden’s South Australian and Victorian manufacturing operations and guiding the company’s transformation from vehicle producer to vehicle importer – a process to be completed by the end of 2017.
Mr Dorizas, who took up the post on March 1, takes over the reins from Mike Devereux, who announced his retirement from the beleaguered auto manufacturer three months ago.

Dorizas takes control of Holden at a time of huge uncertainty as it begins a journey from Australian-made icon to full-line importer.

Athens-born Dorizas – who has more than two decades of experience in the automotive industry – began his career in the early 1990s as deputy sales director at Mercedes Benz Hellas and became president and CEO of the Fiat Auto group of companies in Greece in 2000.

In the past decade he has been president of Hyundai Motor Europe in Germany and CEO of Volkswagen group Sales in India.

Mr Dorizas told reporters that he was looking forward to the challenges of his new job.

“Around the world, Holden is renowned for the strength of its product and the professionalism of its people,” Mr Dorizas said.

“I am energised by the opportunity to lead a talented and passionate team and to guide one of Australia’s strongest, most iconic brands into its next phase.”
President of GM’s International Operations, Stefan Jacoby, said that Mr Dorizas was the right man for the job as Holden sets out to reinvent its operations.
“Gerry has the right industry-leading experience and credentials to lead GM Holden through a significant program of change, as it transitions to a national sales company,” he said.

“GM International Operations is undergoing a transformation that is committed to driving our markets toward success. As part of this transformation, the GMIO team is working to build a global organisation with strong local passion, ownership and entrepreneurship.”

The last eight Holden bosses have come from GM’s operations in North America and Europe.

Dorizas most recently served as Volkswagen Group India president and CEO and is understood to be the first person to be hired from outside General Motors to run Holden.