LOS ANGELES — Hyundai Motor America’s chief legal officer, Jerry Flannery, is retiring after 34 years with the automaker. He joined just two years after it established U.S. operations.
Flannery started with Hyundai as senior corporate counsel in 1987 before being promoted to general counsel and then to chief legal officer in 2003. Flannery, 63, also was interim CEO through most of 2017, Hyundai said in a statement.
“Since nearly the start of Hyundai selling vehicles in the U.S., Jerry has been a trusted counselor and passionate advocate of the brand and our customers,” said José Muñoz, CEO of Hyundai Motor North America. “We wouldn’t be the company we are today without his vision, leadership and integrity.”
Prior to joining Hyundai, Flannery was a senior attorney in the office of the general counsel at Ford Motor Co. His retirement from Hyundai is effective March 1, and the company has started a search for his successor.
“It’s been the honor of my career to help Hyundai build and grow its U.S. business,” Flannery said in the statement. “The Hyundai story has been one of impressive transformation and I’m enormously proud of everything we accomplished together.”
Flannery was interim CEO after the automaker fired U.S. chief executive Dave Zuchowski in the closing days of 2016 for failing to meet internal sales objectives.
Flannery is among several top Hyundai executives to retire or leave the company since Muñoz took over as CEO in May 2019 and began reshaping the executive team. They include a new sales chief, marketing chief, product development leader, communications director and CEO of luxury brand Genesis.
