GM Canada has named Lauren MacDonald as its first CMO in a revamp and major expansion of the automaker’s in-house marketing program.

Shane Peever, GM Canada’s VP of vehicle sales and service marketing, said in a LinkedIn post on Tuesday that MacDonald’s hiring will be followed by a number of additions in departments including brand strategy, digital marketing.

MacDonald, currently the global head of marketing at IKEA Canada, is scheduled to start in GM’s newly created CMO position on Sept. 1 and will report to Peever in the role.

GM Canada has historically not had an official CMO standalone role, with marketing in Canada typically  managed as part of the the VP of sales, service and marketing’s responsibilities.

“This is the next chapter in GM Canada’s journey: Building the right team, the right capabilities, and the right partnerships to help us move faster, think bigger, and connect more deeply with Canadians,” Peever said in the post. “We’re not just reshaping a team; we’re shaping the future of modern marketing at GM Canada.”

Peever said the corporation is aiming to build a customer-first marketing team capable of delivering bigger and faster ideas that connect more deeply with consumers. He worked in several sales and marketing positions during more than 20 years at GM before being named to his current role in March of last year.

MacDonald has been at IKEA Canada since spring 2014 when she was named the director of marketing. She then became IKEA Canada’s CMO in May 2016 before moving into the head of global marketing position in May 2019.

IKEA Canada won numerous marketing accolades during MacDonald’s tenure at the company, including two Cannes Gold Lions this year for the “U up?” campaign and Brand of the Year recognition from strategy in 2018.

GM said in its second-quarter earnings report on July 2 that it had recorded 15.8% market share through the first half of 2025 and announced an 8% increase in sales over the same period last year.