Peugeot, Jeep, DS brands get new CEOs in latest round of Stellantis exec shakeup

Stellantis is undergoing significant leadership shakeups following the departure of CEO Carlos Tavares with company appointing new heads for the major brands under its belt including Jeep, Peugeot, DS Automobiles, as well as its Pro One commercial vehicles division while also restructuring its organisation to allow for more regional autonomy.

Kicking things off with the state of play at Jeep, its most important marque as far as North America is concerned. Antonio Filosa stepping down from his role as brand chief. Filosa, now taking up the role of chief operating officer of Stellantis North America, will be succeeded at Jeep by Bob Broderdorf, who previously served as senior vice president and head of the Jeep brand for North America.

Stellantis has also restructured other areas of Jeep’s leadership, consolidating North America and global operations into a single entity overseeing sales, operations, product development, communications, and marketing. Additionally, former RAM brand boss Mike Koval has been appointed as senior vice president and head of sales operations for Jeep.

Despite these leadership shifts, the brand faces considerable challenges. Jeep’s U.S. sales have plummeted due to various strategic missteps, including the discontinuation of the Cherokee and some rather unwelcome price hikes. Sales have almost halved from 973,227 units in 2018 to just 587,725 in 2023—a staggering decline of 385,502 units within 5 years.

Over in Europe, Xavier Peugeot (yes, that’s his actual last name) has been named - ironically -  CEO of DS Automobiles, replacing Olivier François, who will take on other strategic roles within Stellantis. Mr Peugeot has been with PSA Peugeot Citroën since 1994 and has held key positions such as Director of Peugeot Netherlands, Peugeot Product Director, and Head of Citroën Product.

Meanwhile, perhaps much to Xavier’s dismay, Alain Favey has been appointed CEO of Peugeot. With two decades of experience at PSA Group before moving to Volkswagen and later Europcar Mobility Group, Favey takes over from Linda Jackson, who is retiring after 20 years with the company.

Yes, all this does sound pretty intensive, but it goes deeper; beyond leadership changes, Stellantis is refining its organisational structure by granting more decision-making power to its regional divisions. The new approach aims to improve product planning, development, industrial processes, and commercial activities within specific markets.

Additionally, Stellantis has merged its Corporate Affairs and Communications teams to ensure consistent engagement with stakeholders, while a new centralised Marketing Office has also been established to support brand visibility through traditional advertising, global events, and sponsorships.

With all these changes in motion, it’s difficult to say how long it might take for these changes to bear fruit. Concurrently, the top spot remains vacant as Stellantis is still searching for someone to helm the ship as successor to Carlos Tavares, though the company has confirmed that the selection process is well underway and expects to finalise the appointment within the first half of 2025.

These leadership shifts and structural changes indicate a strategic effort to address the company’s challenges and drive future growth. However, with Jeep’s sales continuing to decline and European brands facing an increasingly competitive landscape, the effectiveness of Stellantis' new direction will remain vague for some time yet.