• May 12, 2010

Auto insiders have been predicting it since Joel Ewanick left Hyundai in March to become first VP of marketing at Nissan and now head of North American marketing ops at GM: Chris Perry has been given the nod to be the Fountain Valley, Calif. company's VP of marketing. He will report to Hyundai Motor America CEO and President John Krafcik.

Perry, director of marketing communications at Hyundai since 2007, has been a central figure in the company's Web marketing strategy, and media planning alongside Ewanick that put Hyundai vehicles and branding on tentpole media events like the Super Bowl and Oscars.

Said Krafcik in a statement: "During his 10 years at Hyundai, Chris has moved from doing great brand planning and positioning work to delivering our 'big voices in big places' media strategy and groundbreaking creative, all the while building strong relationships with his agencies and colleagues. Nobody knows the Hyundai brand and our target customer better than Chris Perry, and no one is better equipped to take this growing brand to the next level."--Karl Greenberg