Ann Durham has been promoted to president of Global Vehicles U.S.A., Inc., the distributor of fuel-efficient, diesel-powered vehicles produced by India's Mahindra & Mahindra.
According to John Perez, Global Vehicles' chief executive officer, Durham's demonstration of management and organizational skills fueled her rapid rise since joining the company in January 2008 as vice president, finance and administration, followed by her promotion late last year to senior vice president, general manager.
"Ann has the right mixture of business acumen, industry experience and people skills to lead Global Vehicles at this critical time," Perez said. "We are embarking on a historic journey with the introduction of the first Indian-produced vehicles to America and Ann's passion, along with her business qualities, will be a key to our success.
"We knew we had someone special when we hired Ann, and with Bill Goetze (former president) stepping down from day-to-day activities, the time was right for this appointment."
Goetze, 71, who was instrumental in building Global Vehicles' organization, especially its dealer body, will remain involved as senior advisor, past president, according to Perez.
Durham, 39, brought automotive experience to Global Vehicles from her post as chief financial officer for Lotus Cars USA, Inc. There she was responsible for an overhaul of the financial systems as well as being involved in all aspects of the operation including the launch of a new vehicle, sales, marketing, IT, parts, service and warranty.
Beginning in late 2009, Global Vehicles, headquartered here, will market two- and four-door clean-diesel-powered pickup trucks, in both two-wheel and four-wheel-drive versions. These trucks are compact in size with the payload and towing capacity of full-size pickups, but the fuel economy of a small automobile. A diesel-powered SUV, with similar characteristics, will follow about a year after the pickup's launch.