Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News China
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
    • Latest news
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • New Product
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Sales By Market
    • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
    • Munich Auto Show
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
  • Features
    • Long Read
    • Interview of the Month
    • Focus on Electrification
    • Focus on Technology
    • Segment Analysis
    • Cars & Concepts
    • Supplier Spotlight
    • Europe By The Numbers
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Commentary
    • Guest columnists
  • Photos
    • Photo Galleries
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Podcasts
  • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS
    • ANE Congress
    • ANE Rising Stars
    • ANE Eurostars
    • Meet the 2021 winners
    • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
  • More
    • Publishing Partners
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
    • Media Kit
    • About Us
    • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
    • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
    • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
    • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
    • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
    • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
    • Toyota Europe
    • UFI Filters
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Automotive News Europe
November 25, 2013 12:00 AM

PSA hires Tavares as next CEO

Former Renault No. 2 will replace current boss Varin at unspecified time in 2014

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Tavares will join the PSA management board on Jan. 1

    PARIS (Bloomberg) -- PSA/Peugeot-Citroen has hired former Renault Chief Operating Officer Carlos Tavares to lead the French manufacturer out of a six-year slump in European demand that has sapped the finances of the region's second-biggest carmaker.

    Tavares, 55, will replace Philippe Varin, the 61-year-old current CEO, in 2014, the Paris-based company said in a statement Monday.

    Tavares will join the management board on Jan. 1 and take over as CEO later in the year, PSA said, without specifying the date.

    "He's a very ambitious man," said Christian Lafaye, FO union leader at PSA. "I guess that if he wants to come to Peugeot, he will want to show that he's able to turn around the company. This could be a good thing."

    Tavares, who left his position as Renault's COO three months ago, will need to return PSA to profit, stop cash consumption and expand outside Europe.

    As the third CEO to lead the automaker in the seven years, he will also be charged with bringing stability to the automaker in an industry where strategic plans take years to unfold.

    "This regular changing of CEOs and the overall instability of the management board over the last few years is more proof of the lack of clarity," Florent Couvreur, an analyst at CM-CIC Securities, said Monday. "Peugeot is a enormous mammoth that will require time to evolve."

    Tavares left Renault at the end of August, two weeks after Bloomberg published an interview with him saying that he would like to run another automaker because CEO Carlos Ghosn, 59, planned to stay for the foreseeable future.

    Renault experience

    Tavares spent more than three decades at Renault and affiliate Nissan Motor Co., rising through the ranks to eventually take over as Ghosn's No. 2 at the French automaker. Tavares, who races cars himself, was working to add a sports-car brand and luxury marque at the Renault group.

    A key challenge for the new chief will be returning the French manufacturer, which reported a first-half operating loss of 510 million euros in its automotive unit, to profit. The carmaker is also working to reduce cash consumption by 50 percent this year to 1.5 billion euros.

    Under Tavares, Renault reported unexpected growth in first-half profit as labor-cost reductions and higher vehicle prices more than offset an industrywide slump in European deliveries. When Tavares oversaw North America for Nissan, 43 percent owned by Renault, he helped the company earn 209 billion yen ($2.05 billion) in the region in the year ended March 2010, versus a 46.7 billion yen loss in 2009.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    CEO of wiring systems supplier Leoni to speak at Automotive News Europe Congress
    Recommended for You
    Aldo Kamper Leoni 2022
    CEO of wiring systems supplier Leoni to speak at Automotive News Europe Congress
    Wolfgang Bremm von Kleinsorgen Mercedes web
    Mercedes Central, Eastern Europe boss von Kleinsorgen to speak at Automotive News Europe Congress
    Riccardo Ferrario Idra web 2022
    Riccardo Ferrario of Giga Press maker Idra to speak at Automotive News Europe Congress
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Get 24/7 access to in-depth, authoritative coverage of the auto industry from a global team of reporters and editors covering the news that’s vital to your business.

    SUBSCRIBE NOW
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584

    Email Us

    ISSN 2643-6590 (print)
    ISSN 2643-6604 (online)

     

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Europe
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
      • Latest news
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • New Product
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Sales By Market
      • On The Move
      • Auto Shows
        • Munich Auto Show
        • Geneva Auto Show
        • Paris Auto Show
        • Beijing Auto Show
        • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Features
      • Long Read
      • Interview of the Month
      • Focus on Electrification
      • Focus on Technology
      • Segment Analysis
      • Cars & Concepts
      • Supplier Spotlight
      • Europe By The Numbers
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Commentary
      • Guest columnists
    • Photos
      • Photo Galleries
      • Geneva Photo Gallery
      • Beijing Photo Gallery
      • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
      • Paris Photo Gallery
      • Shanghai Photo Gallery
    • Podcasts
    • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS
      • ANE Congress
      • ANE Rising Stars
        • Meet the 2021 winners
      • ANE Eurostars
        • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
    • More
      • Publishing Partners
        • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
        • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
        • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
        • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
        • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
        • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
        • Toyota Europe
        • UFI Filters
      • Social Media
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • LinkedIn
        • Twitter
      • Contact Us
      • Media Kit
      • About Us