• by Tanya Gazdik , July 9, 2024

Nissan U.S. is getting a new head of marketing operations who has been at the automaker for more than half of his career. 

Jeff Pope, who is currently division vice president, dealer network development, customer resources and training, Nissan and Infiniti, U.S. and Canada, becomes vice president, chief marketing manager (CMM) and marketing operations, Nissan U.S.

Pope joined Nissan in 2006 after spending 11 years at Ford Motor Co. His last position at the Detroit-based automaker was district manager in the greater New York City area. He grew up in the Detroit area and received both his undergraduate degree and MBA from Michigan State University. 

He has held a variety of sales and marketing positions at Nissan and Infiniti in New York, California and Tennessee. He also spent three years at the automaker’s operations in Hong Kong, where his positions included director, global sales operations and senior director, global sales operations.  

Pope replaces Scott Shirley, who will retire at the end of the year. Shirley joined Nissan in 1988, and has held a variety of leadership roles in marketing and sales during his tenure with the company.

"Scott has been a strong leader during his 36-year Nissan career, and we thank him for his positive contributions both for our business and company culture," said Jérémie Papin, chairperson, Nissan Americas, in a statement. "As we focus our energy on delivering meaningful innovation both in our vehicle lineup and with our industry-leading customer experience, we're fortunate to have a strong group of leaders who will continue to lead the charge."

In his new role, Pope will be responsible for leading Nissan's marketing operations teams, including vehicle pricing, incentives and lifecycle plans. He will report to Vinay Shahani, senior vice president, U.S. marketing and sales.

Steve Milette, president, Nissan Canada, Inc., will succeed Pope as division vice president, dealer network development, customer resources and rraining. 

In this role, Milette will have responsibility for dealer network development operations for both Nissan and Infiniti brands in the U.S. and Canada, along with training responsibilities for the field organization and dealership employees in the U.S. Milette will relocate to Nissan Americas' headquarters in Franklin, and also report to Shahani.

Trevor Longley, currently vice president, sales operations, Nissan Canada, Inc., will replace Milette as president, NCI. He will be responsible for all Nissan and Infiniti operations in Canada, including sales and marketing, finance, dealer network, product and corporate planning, aftersales, communication, legal, human resources, and the captive sales finance company.  

Longley will report to Papin and will be based at NCI headquarters in Mississauga, Canada.