Hyundai Motor America has named Erwin Raphael as the general manager for the Genesis luxury brand and named his replacement to manage Western dealers, the automaker has announced.

Raphael will oversee the strategic direction and management of Genesis operations in the U.S., including sales and marketing. He reports to Dave Zuchowski, president and chief executive.

Raphael arrives in the role after a promotion from western region director and general manager for Hyundai where he oversaw the operations of 165 Hyundai dealerships in 12 Western states.

Hyundai has named Kimberly Walker to Raphael's former role. Walker will report to Derrick Hatami, vice president of national sales.

Raphael and Walker will step into their new roles on March 1. At that time, Raphael will begin forming a team ahead of the summer launch of the Genesis G90, the first luxury sedan from the luxury spinoff.

Raphael has worked for Hyundai since 2010 and has also served as the director of engineering and quality, where he was responsible for new vehicle engineering, overall improvement in quality of production vehicles, technical training and support, as well as warranty planning and operations.

Walker joined Hyundai in 2006 and served in roles in assurance products and consumer affairs prior to being named director of parts marketing in 2008. Walker is moving from her current role as director of retail process and sales satisfaction.

Prior to joining Hyundai, Walker spent more than 12 years with Nissan North America, where she held numerous positions in sales, marketing, and parts and service in both the Nissan and Infiniti field organizations.