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GM’s adjustments are advancing with visible efficiency. On January 8, General Motors officially announced its eighth GM chief designer, with Cadillac global design executive director Bryan Nesbitt “taking over,” while seventh global design senior vice president Michael Simcoe will retire on July 1.
Bryan Nesbitt, who is about to “take over,” not only is currently at Cadillac, but also previously had work experience in China—GM’s two major global strategic strongholds have provided a broad stage for the development of senior talent.
A younger generation takes over
China is not only the world’s largest auto market, but is also known as the world’s most fiercely competitive auto market: one reason for the fierce competition is that it gathers almost all auto brands from around the world, while also featuring white-hot competition intensity with Chinese-style efficiency. Just as Chinese automakers have now doubled the efficiency of full vehicle updates from the previous 4 years, or even shorter, those who can stand out in the fierce competition of the Chinese market are all outstanding figures.
To date, content can still be found from 2013 when Bryan Nesbitt, then vice president of automotive design at GM International Operations, introduced the domestically produced Cadillac XTS—compared with the on-site photos from that year, the current Bryan Nesbitt only looks like his skin tone has become healthier.
Bryan Nesbitt is clearly a “design leader” of the younger generation. He joined General Motors in 2001 and once led teams to design the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu and the 2008 Buick Enclave (both classic models that were bestsellers for a time). Between 2011 and 2015, Bryan Nesbitt came to China and successively served in Shanghai as vice president of design for GM International Operations and vice president of GM China Design.
His most recent achievements are two newly launched Cadillac concept cars: Opulent Velocity and SOLLEI—the former looks very sci-fi and futuristic, while the latter feels strongly nostalgic and retro (but at the same time adopts dual-motor four-wheel drive). As GM President Mark Reuss said: “We are very pleased that Bryan will take over and lead GM Design. He will use his extensive talents and outstanding leadership to lead us into the future. Bryan has broad experience across all of our brands and a deep understanding of our customers. As his recent work at Cadillac has shown, his design expression has continued to improve, becoming increasingly refined and bold.”
42 years as a GM person
Before Bryan Nesbitt officially “takes over,” current global design senior vice president Michael Simcoe will continue to hold his current position until retirement to ensure a smooth handover between the two.
Judging from several cases of GM executive succession and reassignment, GM’s corporate culture is worth learning from by domestic companies: Michael Simcoe served at General Motors for 42 years until retirement—GM has always been consistent in talent growth and value realization, and many GM executives have served the company for decades and held positions in different departments and regions. On the other hand, in talent selection, it can also break conventional rules and let the younger generation lead major projects.
Michael Simcoe served for many years, and his design philosophy emphasized customer needs and expectations, adjusted the organizational structure to provide products focused on detail and execution, and combined an innovative spirit with technology-driven concepts to promote development in areas such as electrification, autonomous driving, and user experience. At the same time, he also supported the establishment of GM’s Design West design flagship center to promote collaboration and accelerate GM’s transformation. During his tenure, Michael Simcoe presided over many famous works, recent examples including the Cadillac LYRIQ, GMC Hummer, and Chevrolet Equinox EV.
Mark Reuss’s assessment of him was: “Simcoe is a visionary designer and leader who has raised the standard of automotive design globally. Under his leadership, GM Design has created stunning products that customers love. Simcoe’s focus on customer needs, keen eye for detail, and insight into future trends made him perfectly meet all our expectations for a chief designer. He also established close working relationships with engineering and manufacturing, pushing the boundaries of creativity and execution. Simcoe and his team have solidified GM’s leadership in design.”
Author: Liu Jungang
