White Plains, N.Y.-based Heineken USA announced that, effective July 1, Ronald den Elzen, the current managing director of Heineken Portugal, will become chief executive officer, and current chief executive officer Dolf van den Brink will become chief executive officer of Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma (CM)/Heineken Mexico. 

Van den Brink has worked with Heineken for 17 years; however, he has spent the previous six year at Heineken USA. During his tenure at Heineken USA, he led a successful turnaround of the business, restoring top-line growth and driving consistent market share gains, the company says. In his new role, van den Brink will lead CM/Heineken Mexico, Heineken’s largest operating company. With more than 16,000 employees, a high performance culture, a clear innovation agenda and strong brands such as Heineken, Tecate and Dos Equis, van den Brink will help CM/Heineken Mexico achieve its vision of becoming the leading brewer in Mexico, it says.

 “I’m incredibly proud of everything Heineken USA has achieved over the last six years,” van den Brink said in a statement. “Collectively with our passionate employees and dedicated partners we have become a true portfolio company and created great momentum in the marketplace. Heineken USA has a tremendous amount of potential, and I believe Ronald is the right person, arriving at the right time to lead the acceleration of this business.”

Den Elzen is originally from the Netherlands and has worked at Heineken for more than 20 years. In that time, he has served in finance, sales and general management roles in Heineken’s businesses in Amsterdam, the United Kingdom and Portugal. In his current role as managing director of Heineken Portugal, he mobilized and energized the organization around a powerful growth strategy during an economic depression, the company says. Together with his team, he succeeded in growing both the top and bottom line and overtook the competition by making Heineken the leading brand in the premium segment, it says. 

 “The opportunity to join such a dynamic business at this time is truly exciting,” den Elzen said in a statement. “Heineken USA has seen consistent growth through its strong portfolio of upscale brands and has a clearly defined ambition to become the leaders in upscale beer. I look forward to working with Heineken USA’s leadership team, employees, distributors and partners to ignite future growth.”