GENERAL Motors has appointed former Holden chair and managing director Kristian Aquilina as vice president of Global Cadillac, effective January 2026.

He is currently president and managing director of GM Canada, a role he will retain until a successor is announced.

Kristian Aquilina, vice president of Global Cadillac

It is Mr Aquilina’s second prominent role at Cadillac. He was managing director of Cadillac international operations and Cadillac Middle East, based in Dubai, from 2020 to 2023.He was chair and managing director of Holden from December 2019 to November 2020, and before that, managing director of GM Holden NZ Ltd from 2015 to 2018.

Mr Aquilina said: “You can’t start the next amazing chapter without truly appreciating the last one.”

He wrote on his LinkedIn page: “I’m honoured and excited to take on a new role as vice president of Global Cadillac, effective January 1, 2026.

“In the meantime, I will continue to oversee GM Canada operations to ensure an orderly transition to my replacement, who will be announced at a later date.

“My time in Canada as head of vehicle sales, service and marketing and then president and managing director has been deeply rewarding because of all the GM Canada team has achieved together.

“I’m incredibly proud of the progress we have made in our business, and of the capabilities of this team.

“We have strengthened GM’s market leadership in Canada, advanced electric vehicle adoption, invested in our manufacturing plants, and the Canadian Technical Centre continues to be a hotbed of innovation for engineering and software development.”

Mr Aquilina said it had been “a privilege to work alongside such a talented and dedicated group, who show up every day with a uniquely Canadian way of ‘seizing the moment’.

“The future will continue to bring change, and I have every confidence that this team will meet the moment with resilience and adaptability.”