Progressive Insurance announced today the hire of Remi Kent as chief marketing officer. Kent, who formerly was senior VP and global CMO of the consumer business group at 3M, replaces Progressive’s longtime top marketer Jeff Charney, who is retiring. She starts Nov. 1.

At 3M, Kent helped the company surge during the pandemic with messaging focused around PPE, educating consumers on the use of masks and respirators. She’s now tasked with operating the Mayfield Village, Ohio-based Progressive’s massive advertising budget. Last year, the company spent around $2 billion on advertising, an 11% increase from 2019. Earlier this year, Kent was named to Ad Age's Leading Women list.

This includes the stewardship of memorable ad characters such as Flo, her minion Jamie, and the more recent Dr. Rick, who has become a living room TV regular for millions during the pandemic. Such campaigns have been helping to reap in the returns for the insurance giant—last year, Progressive saw revenue rise 9% over 2019 to $42.7 billion as it focused on new opportunities to engage with customers when people were driving less and in more need of support during coronavirus lockdowns.

Before 3M, where she spent eight years, Kent worked at Procter & Gamble.