High-level corporate roles are doing a bit of shaking beneath the Stellantis umbrella. The automotive conglomerate announced several executive changes today, both at Stellantis proper and among some brands, including Dodge and Ram in the United States. All changes will take effect on July 1, 2023.
Starting in the States, current Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis will take on a dual role as the CEO of Ram. He steps into the position being vacated by current Ram CEO Mike Koval, who will become the new head of Mopar North America. Mopar has long stood as the parts division for Chrysler, Ram, Dodge, and Jeep, with an eye toward performance upgrades and factory-made accessories. He reports to Stellantis North America Chief Operating Officer Mark Stewart.
As for Kuniskis, there’s a bit of symmetry in his role as CEO for both Dodge and Ram. Lest we forget, the two brands were once one and the same until Ram was spun off from Dodge starting with the 2011 model year. From 1980 through 2010, the Dodge Ram existed as a competitor to the Ford F-Series and Chevrolet C/K pickups, which became the Silverado for the 1999 model year. To this day, many people still call the Ram pickup a Dodge.
These executive changes are significant for North America, but there’s more happening within Stellantis across the pond. Fiat CEO Olivier Francois will become another dual-role CEO, picking up the reins of DS Automobiles from current boss Beatrice Foucher. Francois will also serve as the global chief marketing officer for Stellantis, while Foucher moves up to chief planning officer. That position is currently held by Olivier Bourges, who moves to a new role as the global corporate and public affairs officer at Stellantis. So yeah, some musical chairs are afoot.
“These changes demonstrate that the diversity of talent and experience inside Stellantis’ top executive team make it possible to adapt our leadership team to address the challenging business environment while continuing the success story that this team has built over the past two and a half years with the focused execution of the Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan,” said Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares.
As a reminder, Dare Forward 2030 is the ambitious electric initiative Stellantis announced in March 2022. The goal is to have 100 percent EV sales for all its brands in Europe by 2030, with 50 percent targeted for North America.
