BMW Group Middle East has announced the appointment of Rana Jones as its new corporate communications manager effective from Oct. 1. Jones will be handling the corporate communications for BMW Group in 14 of its Middle East & Asia markets. The 29-year-old Lebanese has held the brand management position for MINI at BMW Group for the past four years. Jones began her career in PR in Beirut in 1997, handling the BMW account and a variety of other blue chip clients for a multinational advertising and PR agency. In 2001, she moved to Dubai to join BMW Group Middle East as dealer development manager and was promoted to the MINI brand management position within three months. In that role Jones launched the MINI brand across the region in 2002. In 2004, she managed and launched the BMW 1 Series brand. “Rana’s strength lies with her experience in both marketing and PR, giving her an upper hand in understanding the challenges and opportunities in a region like the Middle East,” said Guenther Seemann, MD, BMW Group Middle East.