Surprise change at the top of Stellantis. The automotive group has announced that Natalia Knight become Executive Vice President e Chief Financial Officer (CFO) replacing the current director Richard Palmer. Palmer, reads the company note “expects to leave Stellantis on June 30, 2023 to ensure a smooth handover. The handover will take place, however, no later than 10 July 2023.
"I'm very happy for Natalie to join Stellantis. You have worked for different companies in different industries, both in the US and in Europe,” he said Carlos TavaresCEO stellantis. “With his experience and proven leadership skills in business transformation, including a clear ESG focus, he is exactly the right leader to continue to give acceleration to the Dare Forward 2030 strategy by Stellantis. I am convinced he will play a strategic role in setting new momentum and unleashing the great value potential of Stellantis.”
Knight will be based at the Auburn Hills, Michigan office, with extensive travel throughout Europe and other regions.
Tavares then thanked Palmer who leaves after twenty years of work first in FCA then in Stellantis: “On behalf of all Stellantis employees and our Board of Directors, I would like to express our gratitude to Richard. Following his success with FCA, Richard has contributed significantly to the successful merger to create Stellantis and its integration over the past two years. We wish Richard the best for the future and for all the new challenges that await him”.
Palmer leaves after twenty years with the company
Palmer had joined Fiat in 2003 as financial director of Comau and since then had held various positions of increasing responsibility in the group, including that of chief operating officer of Fiat Chrysler. In 2009 he became CFO of Chrysler Group. Since 2011 he has assumed the role of CFO in FCA which he maintains, following the merger with Psa, in Stellantis. He was a member of the GEC, Group executive council, a body that brings together all top executive managers, from 1 September 2011. Palmer was highly appreciated by Sergio Marchionne. He contributed to the merger between Fiat and Chrysler and to that between FCA and PSA, and to implement the financial strategy of the former CEO.
The Stock Exchange does not appreciate the exchange rate and the stock collapses
The CFO change comes on a day when the auto sector is under heavy pressure in the stock market, following Tesla's cut in earnings and the fears of a fast-growing recession it triggered. The title of Stellantis it is the worst at FTSEMIB losing even 5% during the morning. At noon, the stock dropped 4,75%. Renault and Volkswagen are also falling, it is the entire sector that is targeted by sales.
The results relating to the registrations of new cars of the group in Europe also weighed on the stock, which showed a decline in market share of Stellantis from 19% to 17,8%. Registrations, in March, rose by 23,3% to 251.122 units.
Natalie Knight's resume
natalie knight currently holds the position of Chief Financial Officer at Ahold Delhaize, a Dutch large-scale retail company. Prior to joining the company in early 2020, Knight was the CFO of Arla Foods in Denmark, He held several senior positions in the finance function during his 17 years at adidas AG in Germany and the United States. He started out in Investor Relations roles at BASF and Bankgesellschaft Berlin. Natalie Knight is a graduate of the University of Arizona, USA and Freie Universität Berlin, Germany, and subsequently undertook executive leadership programs at INSEAD, France and St. Gallen University, Switzerland.
