The world’s most valuable automaker said Tesla Chief Financial Officer Zachary Kirkhorn would step down after four years and appointed accounting chief Vaibhav Taneja to replace him, sending shares down more than 3% on Monday.
The Elon Musk-led company did not specify the reason for Kirkhorn’s departure, which he has been with for 13 years. He will remain with the company until the end of the year to help smooth the transition.
During his tenure, Tesla posted its first quarterly profit after launching its mass-market Model 3 compact sedan and achieving a market valuation of over $1 trillion (nearly Rs 8,278,000 crore).
Musk made the surprise disclosure of Kirkhorn’s 2019 appointment and the exit of his predecessor, Deepak Ahuja, toward the end of a conference call with analysts to discuss the company’s quarterly results.
“Being part of this company is a special experience and I’m extremely proud of the work we’ve done together since joining 13 years ago,” Kirkhorn said in a LinkedIn post.
Kirkhorn did not immediately respond to inquiries when we reached him on LinkedIn.
Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, said: “He will stay on until the end of the year, which proves that it is just for personal reasons, and the personal reasons are probably very difficult to work with Elon Musk, and he has been doing this for 13 years.”
Taneja, 45, joined Tesla after it acquired SolarCity in 2016. The automaker said he took on the role, a so-called “money master” position, in addition to his role as chief accounting officer.
The Austin, Texas-based automaker has lowered vehicle prices this year, a move that prioritizes sales growth and market share and squeezes its industry-leading profit margins.
Tesla also signaled further price cuts as rising borrowing costs take a toll on the electric car maker’s sales during what Musk called “turbulent times.”
Outgoing CFO Kirk Horn was also considered as a possible successor to Musk earlier this year as investors grew concerned about the lack of a clear succession plan, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Musk currently leads SpaceX, Neuralink, The Boring Company, and serves as the chief technology officer of social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter).
© Thomson Reuters 2023
