Hertz Global Holdings Inc. announced today that veteran marketing and sales executive Wayne Davis will join the company as Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), effective January 3, 2023. In this role, Davis will be responsible for leading the Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty brands and shaping the company’s marketing strategy to drive effective brand reach and customer engagement. Laura C. Smith, who has led marketing for the last two years, will continue in her role as Executive Vice President, Global Sales and Customer Experience.
Davis joins Hertz with more than 20 years of marketing, sales, and business development experience across multiple industries. For the last four years, he has led the mass premium Café brand for GE Appliances, a Haier Company. Under his leadership, Café has more than tripled in size and is one of the fastest growing brands in the appliance industry.
“I am delighted to have Wayne join our leadership team at this exciting time for Hertz,” said Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr. “Wayne’s brand-building experience and expertise in data-driven marketing analytics is a powerful combination, and I am excited about the vision he will bring to Hertz as we transform our business through electrification, shared mobility and a digital-first customer experience.”
Prior to leading the Café brand, Davis was Senior Brand Director for Haier & Hotpoint at GE Appliances. Mr. Davis was also the commercial leader for GE Appliances’ FirstBuild innovation hub, where he led the successful launch of the Opal Nugget Ice Maker.
“Hertz is an iconic brand with unlimited potential,” said Davis. “I’m excited to get started with a talented marketing team to bring even more breakthrough ideas to the marketplace and connect Hertz with our consumer, corporate and rideshare customers.”
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Mr. Davis serves on the boards of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana based in Louisville, Kentucky, Amplify Louisville and Fund for the Arts. In 2018 he was named in Louisville Business First’s Forty Under 40 and in 2020 was a member of Leadership Louisville’s Bingham Fellows. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Morehouse College and an MBA from Xavier University.