Mike Manley, the CEO of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, will be in charge of the Americas region when his company merges with PSA Peugeot in early 2021.
That’s according to an open letter sent out to employees on December 18. The letter, written by FCA chairman, John Elkann, was sent to employees to alert them to Manley’s new post.
“Mike [Manley] will play a fundamental role in the future success of Stellantis,” wrote Elkann. He “will be asked to take up the role of Head of Americas, working alongside Carlos [Tavares] and continuing to bring his great experience, energy, and drive to making Stellantis the extraordinary company we know it will be.”
When the two automotive groups merge, they will be called Stellantis. The company will be run by Carlos Tavares, CEO of Peugeot. Neither Manley nor Tavares were named to the Stellantis board of directors.
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Shareholders from both companies will vote on the merger on January 4. If it passes the vote, Stellantis will be the fourth-largest automaker in the world.
With the capacity to produce 8.7 million vehicles per year, its will come in just shy of the Volkswagen Group, the Renault-Nissan alliance, and Toyota.
The new automotive group will include FCA’s Chrysler, Fiat, Dodge, Ram, Jeep, Alfa Romeo and Maserati brands, along with PSA’s Peugeot, Citroen, Opel, Vauxhall, and DS Automobiles.
With marques like Jeep and Ram being highly profitable, Tavares has made no secret of his desire to merge with FCA. Another key facet of the coupling will reportedly be the sale of PSA vehicles in the large American market.
Selling European cars in the US will not be simple, though. Former FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne’s efforts to introduce Fiat to the US were rocky, and Volkswagen has similarly struggled to gain a proportion of the market comparable to its successes in Europe, China, and South America.
Manley, who took up the mantel of CEO two and half years ago following the passing of Sergio Marchionne, will have his work cut out for him.