ACEA appoints new Director General

Brussels, 6 September 2019 – The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Eric-Mark Huitema as its new Director General, with effect on 1 October.
Mr Huitema will succeed Erik Jonnaert, who is stepping down as Secretary General after six years at the helm of the association, which represents the 15 major Europe-based car, van, truck and bus manufacturers.
Mr Huitema (55), a Dutch national, joins ACEA from IBM where he acted as Global Smarter Transportation Leader. Previously he worked in the IT sector, including for internet start-up Chello Benelux, which he co-founded, EDS International and Philips Electronics.
ACEA President and Chairman of the Managing Board of PSA Group, Carlos Tavares: “As the future of the auto industry is connected and digital, Mr Huitema’s background will be highly relevant to take us through some of the major transformations ahead.”
“On behalf of ACEA’s Board of Directors, I would like to thank Erik Jonnaert for his untiring commitment to the association and our industry over the last very intense years.”
Eric-Mark Huitema, who studied technical chemistry at Delft University and business and sales administration at INSEAD, said: “This is a really exciting time to be leading the EU auto sector’s association. I look forward to playing my part in helping the industry rise to the new challenges, while at the same time ensuring that it maintains its leadership on the world stage.”
Notes for editors
- The photo of Mr Huitema in high resolution can be downloaded here: http://www.acea.auto/files/Eric-Mark_Huitema_ACEA.jpg.
About ACEA
- The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) represents the 14 major Europe-based car, van, truck and bus makers: BMW Group, DAF Trucks, Daimler Truck, Ferrari, Ford of Europe, Honda Motor Europe, Hyundai Motor Europe, Iveco Group, Jaguar Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Renault Group, Toyota Motor Europe, Volkswagen Group, and Volvo Group.
- Visit www.acea.auto for more information about ACEA, and follow us on www.twitter.com/ACEA_auto or www.linkedin.com/company/ACEA/.
- Contact: Cara McLaughlin, Communications Director, cm@acea.auto, +32 485 88 66 47.
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About the EU automobile industry
- 13.0 million Europeans work in the automotive sector
- 11.5% of all manufacturing jobs in the EU
- €374.6 billion in tax revenue for European governments
- €101.9 billion trade surplus for the European Union
- Over 7% of EU GDP generated by the auto industry
- €59.1 billion in R&D spending annually, 31% of EU total