Headquarters:
Markham, Ontario
Year founded:
1983
Number of employees:
262
Phone:
905 648 6827
Email:
kmior@hyundaicanada.com
Website:
hyundaicanada.com
LinkedIn:
ca.linkedin.com/company/hyundai-auto-canada-corp-
“What drives our success is our results-driven people. Capable, entrepreneurial Rohitians are the driving force behind our growth”,
Masa Idelbi,
Manager - Human Resources
Don Romano
President and Chief Executive Officer
Ken Maisonville
Director, Sales
Christine Smith
Director, Marketing
Leadership
As president and CEO of Hyundai Auto Canada since January 2014, Don Romano oversees the operational procedures and strategic implementation of the Hyundai and Genesis brands in Canada. His seasoned international experience and leadership style helped propel Hyundai to be one of Canada’s leading automotive brands and the second-largest electric vehicle distributor in the country.
On the corporate level, he champions several initiatives with a focus on developing a fair and inclusive corporate culture and strong employee engagement. These efforts have resulted in Hyundai earning multiple accolades by Great Place to WorkTM. Most recently, Romano was awarded the 2023 Ally of Excellence by the Women’s Executive Network.
Prior to his tenure with Hyundai Canada, he was a senior managing director and chief marketing officer with ALJ International, where he established Toyota Saudi Arabia. He also held senior positions with Nissan North America and Mazda Motor Company.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Don Romano
As the director of sales for HAC, Ken Maisonville oversees all dealer development, field operations, and vehicle sales initiatives. Since his appointment to this role in 2018, Hyundai Canada has achieved consistent year-over-year market share growth, while at the same time, modernizing Hyundai Canada dealer facilities with state-of-the-art renovations to meet global GDSI standards. In 2021, Hyundai reached the number one position in the CADA dealer satisfaction survey when comparing non-luxury volume manufacturers in Canada.
Maisonville has played an integral role in driving Hyundai Canada’s EV leadership forward through a number of industry-first initiatives in Canada. This includes the recent launch of Hyundai Électrifié, the first dealership dedicated to EVs in Canada, and EValuate, Hyundai’s long-term test drive EV discovery program powered by Turo. Maisonville also oversaw the hugely successful pre-order programs for the Kona Electric and IONIQ 5.
Maisonville has over 25 years of experience at Hyundai Canada, first joining the company in 1997 as a business analyst before moving to support the marketing function as a marketing analyst in 1998. He has worked in multiple roles within the company’s regional and national sales and product planning teams since 2002. With this, he brings a breadth of experience and visibility into the sales and operations functions of Hyundai Canada’s business.
Director, Sales
Ken Maisonville
Christine Smith’s career with HAC started six years ago when she brought her 20+ years of advertising and marketing experience to INNOCEAN Worldwide to handle the Hyundai and Genesis accounts. She acted as VP and SVP, where she developed brand retail campaigns for Hyundai. In July 2021, Smith moved from INNOCEAN to director of marketing at Hyundai Auto Canada.
Since joining the company, she has bolstered the Hyundai brand in Canada, most notably by being the champion and driver of Hyundai’s new partnership with the NHL and NHLPA, which went into effect on July 1, 2022. She has also been tasked with running a Canadian-made TV spot touting Hyundai’s leadership in electrification, a successful campaign that has been in circulation for four months. Christine led the team responsible for Hyundai in Canada’s successful brand mantra, “We make WAH!”
Director, Marketing
Christine Smith
“What drives our success is our results-driven people. Capable, entrepreneurial Rohitians are the driving force behind our growth”,
Masa Idelbi,
Manager - Human Resources
“We continue to see cyber as a key opportunity and will be further developing customer-centric solutions across various geographies and segments in line with our growth aspirations”
Erica Kofie, QBE
Leadership
“We continue to see cyber as a key opportunity and will be further developing customer-centric solutions across various geographies and segments in line with our growth aspirations”
Erica Kofie, QBE
“What drives our success is our results-driven people. Capable, entrepreneurial Rohitians are the driving force behind our growth”,
Masa Idelbi, Manager - Human Resources
Leadership
Michel Poirier
Director, Customer Experience and Aftersales
For the past six years, Michel Poirier has been the director of customer experience and aftersales at Hyundai Auto Canada. Reporting to the president and CEO, Poirier is responsible for leading Hyundai’s customer experience and aftersales initiatives.
He received his Bachelor’s of Business Administration at Northwood University, with a concentration in Marketing, and earned his MBA from the Université de Montreal.
Poirier has close to 30 years of experience working in the automotive industry, with some notable roles such as national manager, accessories at GM Canada and sales manager at Chevrolet Cadillac. He brings this experience to Hyundai, where he leads a dedicated team in aftersales.
Director, Customer Experience and Aftersales
Michel Poirier
Eric Marshall
Director, Genesis Brand
Eric Marshall has been with HAC since 2015, starting as product manager for Hyundai. In 2016 – the inception of Genesis Motors Canada – he transitioned to the luxury brand as senior sales manager and was promoted to national sales manager in 2019. Prior to joining the company, he held progressive roles at a domestic automaker in the areas of sales and brand management.
Marshall is among a small, dedicated team responsible for launching operations in the Canadian market as it established its unique agency model. As one of the architects of the organization who participated in the development of the brand strategy and creation of distributor network agreements, he is well equipped to oversee all aspects of the business.
Marshall’s responsibilities include oversight of GRX (Genesis Retail Experience) facility construction and overall growth strategy as sales continue to increase. He is based in Genesis Motors Canada’s head office in Markham, Ontario.
Director, Genesis Brand
Eric Marshall
Hyundai Auto Canada (HAC) is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai markets a full line-up of vehicles in Canada – from subcompact to premium sedans to sports utility and crossovers – and is committed to providing world-class, well-engineered products paired with a customer shopping and ownership experience that exceeds expectations.
When Hyundai entered the Canadian market in 1983, it was the company’s first overseas subsidiary. Since that time, it has grown into one of the best-selling automotive brands in Canada. Hyundai Motor Company’s vision is centred on doing the right thing for humanity and creating innovative solutions to solve global problems. In fulfilling that vision, HAC is committed to providing exceptional vehicles, including sustainable hybrid and electric vehicles that overdeliver on quality, safety and design.
In Canada, the company imports its range of award-winning vehicles to privately owned dealerships. Its more than 220 dealerships across the nation are franchisees of the Hyundai brand. Once the vehicles are sold to the dealerships, HAC continues to support them through award-winning marketing and advertising, monthly promotions and incentives, training and parts programs, contests and more.
“We continue to see cyber as a key opportunity and will be further developing customer-centric solutions across various geographies and segments in line with our growth aspirations”
Erica Kofie, QBE
Steve Flamand
Executive Director of Product, Corporate, IT and Digital Strategy
Kirk Merrett
Director, HR and Administration
Michael Ricciuto
Director, Safety and Compliance
Simon Williams
Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International
and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955
As the executive director of product, corporate, IT and digital strategy for HAC, Steve Flamand oversees the product portfolio life cycle activities, pricing and packaging strategies, research and forecasting functions, and the development of short- and long-term business plans. He is also responsible for Hyundai Canada’s IT and Connected Digital Experience divisions, which was established with the aim of creating industry-leading customer purchasing and ownership experiences with a complete digital transformation that will introduce new business processes. This also includes a heightened focus on retaining customer loyalty through technological innovations across a number of platforms.
Flamand has 30 years of experience in the automotive industry working for both domestic and import brands in positions around the globe. He has a proven international track record of creating and building leading concepts, pioneering new business opportunities, acting upon consumer insights, and responding to market trends.
Prior to joining Hyundai Canada in 2018, Flamand worked for General Motors for 25 years in a variety of product and portfolio planning, program management and strategy roles across Canada, the United States, Europe, and Asia.
Executive Director of Product, Corporate, IT and Digital Strategy
Steve Flamand
Kirk Merrett is the director of human resources and administration at HAC. Since joining the company in 2013, Merrett has been leading the strategic development of the HR function to promote maximum effectiveness in Hyundai’s diverse workforce and directing the inclusive philosophy for attracting and retaining the best talent. Merrett draws from a deep level of expertise through over 20 years’ experience in organizational management and corporate governance.
Merrett strongly believes in the personal and professional benefits of corporate social responsibility and is directly involved in a number of organizations. He and his team have driven a number of youth-targeted CSR initiatives focused on diversity, equity and inclusion, most notably with BGC Canada, for which Hyundai Canada is a title sponsor. In January 2023, he was recognized as Notable Champion of Diversity by Automotive News Canada.
Prior to joining Hyundai, he served as a human resources senior executive for Mitsubishi Canada and Eddie Bauer of Canada.
Director, HR and Administration
Kirk Merrett
Michael Ricciuto is the director of safety and compliance at HAC. He is responsible for guiding and elevating Hyundai and Genesis as the automotive leaders in safety and compliance while overseeing all government policy interactions and strategies.
Ricciuto is a familiar face to HAC, having previously been with the company for eight and a half years. In 2010, he joined HAC as the national manager, product and strategic business planning, was promoted to director, product and corporate strategy in 2016, and subsequently moved to the director, Genesis role where he launched the unique Genesis retail business model in Canada.
Most recently, he was with Volkswagen Canada as their director, network development, for over four years. He also has experience in various engineering and managerial roles, including manager of automotive regulatory activities and vehicle environmental programs, at GM Canada.
Director, Safety and Compliance
Michael Ricciuto
Kimi Shah leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic, and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.
Partner
Kimi Shah
“Despite the challenging claims environment, QBE’s coverage and risk appetite have remained consistent. Brokers and customers know and understand our risk appetite and the cover we offer, providing them with certainty for the future,” says Erica Kofie, head of cyber proposition. “We put our customers at the centre of our business, responding to brokers in a proactive and timely manner and working with the customer to understand their unique risk profile and tailor appropriate solutions.”
Kofie adds, “Through 2022, QBE successfully delivered significant growth in the cyber sector, reflecting the depth and strength of our team. We continue to see cyber as a key opportunity and will be further developing customer-centric solutions across various geographies and segments in line with our growth aspirations.”
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