Stellantis announced a wave of immediate leadership changes Thursday as it adapts to a “turbulent global environment,” according to a press release.
In North America, Antonio Filosa will become COO, in addition to his role as Jeep CEO. He succeeds Carlos Zarlenga, who has held the position since February. Zarlenga’s new position will be announced at a later date, the release said.
The automaker also tapped a new CFO. Natalie Knight will leave Stellantis after just over a year in the position and will be succeeded by Doug Ostermann.
Ostermann, former COO of Stellantis China, has more than 19 years of experience in finance across three international groups, per the release. Gregoire Olivier has been appointed COO China and will remain the liaison for Leapmotor.
In Europe, Jean Philippe Imparato will take over as COO, in addition to his role as CEO of Pro One, succeeding Uwe Hochgeschurtz, who will leave the company. Imparato will “reinforce the commercial performance of the region during the critical period of the energy transition, with his particular focus on sales,” the release said.
Santo Ficili is the new CEO of Maserati and Alfa Romeo and member of the top executive team, succeeding Davide Grasso. Grasso’s next position will be announced at a later date.
Lastly, Stellantis announced that the search is on for Carlos Tavares’ successor as he plans to retire at the end of his term as CEO in early 2026. The search, expected to be complete by Q4 of next year, is being conducted by a special board committee led by Chairman John Elkann.
“During this Darwinian period for the automotive industry, our duty and ethical responsibility is to adapt and prepare ourselves for the future, better and faster than our competitors to deliver clean, safe and affordable mobility,” Tavares said in the release. “The newly appointed leadership team members will make their valuable contributions to our overall team’s determination to tackle the challenges ahead, reinforcing and accelerating our transformation to become the preferred mobility tech company.”
The new appointments are the latest in a series of leadership changes at Stellantis, particularly in North America, where its sales continue to falter.
Last month, former SVP of Ram Brand Operations Bob Broderdorf became the head of Jeep North America, and former Jeep head Bill Peffer assumed the leadership role for North America network development.
