Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares The company announced on December 1 that he had resigned.
His resignation comes less than two months after Strantis said Tavares would leave the company in 2026 when his current contract expires.
In its latest announcement, Stellantis cited “different views” between the board and Tavares as one of the reasons for his sudden departure.
Stellantis has been searching for a potential successor to Tavares since at least September, and the company said in its latest announcement that the search would be completed within the first half of 2025. Stellantis, meanwhile, will be run on an interim basis by an executive team led by Chairman John Elkann, a member of the Agnelli family whose Exor Holdings owns about 14.4% of Stellantis.
Tavares, who spent most of his career at Nissan under Carlos Ghosn, has been CEO of the company since the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV and France’s PSA Group PSA to create Stellantis. After the merger, he successfully improved the efficiency of the company’s 14 brands, and Tavares’ total compensation increased 56% in 2023 to nearly $40 million, thanks to strong sales from the post-pandemic rebound. However, Stellantis came under criticism this year after he reported a 48% year-on-year drop in second-quarter net profit.
The company has since reported a 20% year-over-year decline in global deliveries in the third quarter. In announcing third-quarter results, Stellantis cited a slowdown in the European economy and plans to reduce inventories in the United States as reasons for the drop in deliveries.
In order to turn around the situation, Stellantis plans to further cut costs, including laying off about 4,000 factory and 400 white-collar jobs in the United States. Stellantis also announced plans last week to close a UK van factory
Stellantis also plans to launch about 20 new products in the coming months, many of them in the United States. These include the redesigned Dodge Charger, Jeep Wagoneer S, and the Ram 1500 REV and 1500 Ramcharger. Next-generation Jeep Compass and Cherokee are also coming soon, along with the electric Recon SUV and electric Jeep Renegade, with prices expected to start at less than $25,000.
This article was originally published by ClassicCars.com editorial partner Motor Authority
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