BMW Group has appointed Stefanie Wurst, the outgoing head of BMW Group in the Netherlands, to lead its Mini brand.
Wurst, 53, will take up the role in February, the automaker said in a statement.
Wurst takes over from Bernd Koerber, who becomes head of BMW product management and the connected company.
The Mini job is a key stepping stone for BMW Group executives on the way to top positions. Koerber had been in the role since April 2019 when he took over from Sebastian Mackensen, who became head of BMW North America earlier this year.
Wurst began her career in advertising in 1993 before moving into brand marketing. She ran the Germany brand agency Scholz & Friends before moving to the BMW Group in 2014 as head of marketing for BMW Germany.
In this role she was responsible for BMW's overall brand strategy and campaigns, dealer communications and product management for the German market.
She was promoted to the managing director of BMW Group Netherlands in 2018 before moving in November to become project lead within the customer, sales and brand division under board member Pieter Nota.
Her latest promotion come amid a reshuffle of BMW Group's market regions that merges Germany with Europe and puts more emphasis on the customer's digital journey.