Sonic Automotive, one of the nation’s largest automotive retailers, has promoted longtime vice president of human resources Harry Harden to chief human resources officer.

Harden replaces Angela Broadway, Sonic’s first CHRO, who retired Dec. 31.

Harden served as Sonic’s human resources VP for 14 years beginning in 2001, building and leading the company’s first human resources department before leaving in 2015 to head HR for RFJ Auto Partners.

He returned to Sonic when the company acquired RFJ in 2021, supporting the integration of RFJ dealerships into the company and serving as VP of human resources supporting one of Sonic’s franchise operation regions.

“We were excited for Harry to rejoin our team in 2021 and believe his deep knowledge of our company’s operations enable him to hit the ground running as our CHRO,” Sonic president Jeff Dyke said.

Chairman and CEO David Smith thanked Broadway “for her vision and dedication to help us create our exceptional teammate experience” and said Harden “had a tremendous impact throughout his first tenure with our company and we are confident in his ability to add value to our teammate experience and serve as our CHRO.”

Harry Harden

Sonic said Harden’s expertise includes HR operations, benefits, compliance, recruiting and performance management.

“The opportunity to rejoin this leadership team and continue my career with Sonic Automotive was something I could not have imagined nor declined,” Harden said. “The company has a unique focus on each teammate, where creating opportunities for success make it a special place.”