Edgar Lourençon has served as managing director of GM South Africa and president of GM Sub-Saharan Africa since November 2009.
Lourençon began his career with General Motors in 1977 as an engineer in the Manufacturing Engineering Division of GM do Brasil. After a series of moves that resulted in increasing responsibility, he was selected for the GM Overseas Fellowship Program at Kettering University, which combined an academic program with positions in manufacturing engineering and manufacturing management at the Warren Tech Center in the United States.
In 1992, Lourençon was appointed managing director of Delco Remy in Brazil. In 1995, he was appointed director of Quality and Reliability for GM do Brasil, with the position later expanding to director of Quality and Total Customer Enthusiasm for GM in Latin America. In 2000, he entered the sales and marketing arena as director of Sales and Field Operations. The role was expanded to include Latin America, Africa and Middle East (LAAM) International Product Center director, with responsibility for export and trade development.
Lourençon was appointed president and managing director of GM Chile, Bolivia and Peru in 2004. In August 2007, he was appointed president and managing director of GM Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, retaining his position as president of GM Chile, Bolivia and Peru.
Lourençon was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In 1978, he completed his bachelor’s degree in production engineering at FEI University and three years later was awarded a master’s degree in business administration from Mackenzie University.
Lourençon was a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and the Automotive Quality Institute (IQA) in Brazil. During his time in Chile and Argentina, he served as a board member of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham). He currently is a board member of the South African-American Chamber of Commerce.
