Ralph Gilles named President and CEO of SRT brand

Chrysler has announced a rash of personnel changes. Ralph Gilles will now serve as the President and CEO of the company's Street and Racing Technology brand, which be responsible for crafting performance products across the various Chrysler camps. The SRT brand will also take charge of the company's various motorsports activities. Gilles will still hold onto his duties as head honcho of exterior and interior design.

While SRT has long been familiar to car buyers and enthusiasts, this is the first time Chrysler will treat the performance division as a distinct brand. This probably doesn't mean that SRT will replace Dodge, Jeep, or Chrysler branding on a particular vehicle, rather, it's simply an effort to put the company's SRT projects together under a common head, Gilles.

In addition to the SRT changes, Fred Diaz has been appointed President and CEO of Chrysler de Mexico, and Reid Bigland has taken over duties as President and CEO of the Dodge car brand and head of U.S. sales. Bigland will also continue to serve as President and CEO of Chrysler Canada.

David Buckingham will now fill the newly created Chief Operating Officer of Chrysler Canada position, and Joe ChamaSrour will now report to Mike Manly as part of International Operations for the automaker. Click past the break to view the brief press release.

Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/07/ralph-gilles-named-president-and-ceo-of-srt-brand/