Tesla CFO exit raises questions about succession after Elon Musk
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The surprise exit raises questions about succession in the top ranks of Mr Elon Musk’s company.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
Oakland, California -Tesla chief financial officer Zachary Kirkhorn has stepped down after 13 years at the electric vehicle (EV) maker, a surprise exit that raises new questions about succession in the top ranks of billionaire Elon Musk’s company.
Mr Kirkhorn, one of just four executive officers and a prominent voice for the company with shareholders, resigned from his duties on Friday, the company said on Monday in a regulatory filing.
He will continue to serve in an unspecified capacity through the end of 2023 “to support a seamless transition”.
Chief accounting officer Vaibhav Taneja has taken on the CFO role in addition to his current duties, Tesla said.
Mr Taneja, 45, held several positions at the EV maker before becoming accounting chief in 2019.
He previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in India and the United States.
Tesla shares fell 1 per cent in New York on Monday.
The stock price has more than doubled so far in 2023.
Mr Kirkhorn’s departure comes as Tesla builds a new factory in Mexico and prepares to bring its Cybertruck pick-up to market
Tesla has lowered prices across its line-up to maintain its position atop the electric car industry.
“He’s done a 13-year tour of duty working for Elon, which is like working 50 years for anyone else,” said Mr Gene Munster, managing partner of Deepwater Asset Management. “The fact that he’s sticking around until the end of the year bodes well for the transition.”
Still, the departure of Mr Kirkhorn, who was considered a top contender to succeed Mr Musk as chief executive, renews uncertainty over leadership at Tesla.
It also instantly raises the profile of Mr Taneja, who was not among the 16 executives invited on stage with Mr Musk at an investor meeting in March.
Mr Musk thanked Mr Kirkhorn in a tweet and acknowledged that his tenure was not an easy one.
He did not give any hints about what might be next for the outgoing executive.
Mr Kirkhorn joined Tesla in 2010 as a senior financial analyst and was promoted five times, most recently to CFO in early 2019 at the age of 34.
Before he took over, Tesla had a long history of losses and occasionally burned through more than US$1 billion (S$1.3 billion) in cash per quarter.
The company has been consistently profitable since then, and repaid about US$10 billion of debt in the last three years, helping it secure investment-grade ratings.
It also joined the S&P 500 Index in December 2020.
“Zach did a great job expanding margins,” said Mr Munster. “Usually when companies scale up production, their margins come under pressure. He threaded the needle, and that’s a hard thing to do.” BLOOMBERG
