General Motors (GM) has hired Grant Dixton as executive vice president and chief legal and public policy officer, effective July 15.
Dixton most recently was chief legal officer of Activision Blizzard, a role he took on in 2021. Before that he spent 15 years at Boeing, during which time he held several executive-level positions, including most recently general counsel and corporate secretary.
Earlier in his career, Dixton was associate counsel to former president George W Bush from 2003 to 2006, a role in which he provided legal advice on domestic policy areas, including environmental matters. According to his LinkedIn account, he was previously an associate at law firm Kirkland & Ellis.
In his new role, he will report to GM chair and CEO Mary Barra and oversee the company’s global legal, compliance, corporate governance, privacy and public policy functions.
Dixton succeeds Craig Glidden, who will now focus his time on Cruise, GM’s self-driving car business. At Cruise, Glidden will continue to serve as president and chief administrative officer with responsibility for legal matters, government affairs, finance, communications and human resources. Glidden will support Marc Whitten, who is joining Cruise as its new CEO, and will also serve as executive vice president and strategic adviser at GM. Glidden joined GM in 2015 as general counsel.
Barra says in a statement: ‘Grant Dixton is a respected leader and legal expert who has a deep understanding of the transportation, manufacturing and technology sectors. We are excited to welcome him to GM in this important role and know his experience in both legal and policy matters will be invaluable as the automotive industry continues to transform and evolve.’
She adds: ‘Since Craig joined [GM] nearly a decade ago, I’ve relied on him to help guide our company through many pivotal moments. He’s a no-nonsense and inspirational leader with a deep understanding of the automotive business and legal and policy worlds, and I am grateful he’ll leverage this experience as he focuses on Cruise.’
Ben Maiden
Ben Maiden is the editor-at-large of Governance Intelligence, an IR Media publication, having joined the company in December 2016. He is based in New York. Ben was previously managing editor of Compliance Reporter, covering regulatory and compliance...
