Tesla has announced a new chair to replace Elon Musk.
Robyn Denholm will leave her role as the CFO and Head of Strategy at Telstra (ASX: TLS) to chair the electric car company’s board.
Following a settlement with the SEC after Musk’s infamous tweets about taking Tesla private, the chief executive had to step down as the group’s chair and find a replacement.
In a statement, the group said: “Tesla’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Robyn Denholm has been appointed as Chair of the Tesla Board, effective immediately.”
“So that she will be able to devote her full attention to the Tesla Chair role, Robyn will be leaving her role as CFO and Head of Strategy at Telstra, Australia’s largest telecommunications company, once her six-month notice period with Telstra is complete. Robyn will be serving as Tesla Chair on a full-time basis.”
Denholm has previously worked as CFO and COO at Juniper Networks, as well as various roles at Toyota.
She said: “I believe in this company, I believe in its mission and I look forward to helping Elon and the Tesla team achieve sustainable profitability and drive long-term shareholder value.”
She has served as an independent director of the carmaker’s board since 2014.
Musk said of the appointment: “Robyn has extensive experience in both the tech and auto industries, and she has made significant contributions as a Tesla Board member over the past four years in helping us become a profitable company.”
“I look forward to working even more closely with Robyn as we continue accelerating the advent of sustainable energy,” he added.
The carmaker beat Wall Street analysts’ expectations in the third quarter and delivered 83,500 cars.
Shares in the group (NASDAQ: TSLA) are trading +2.08% at 348,16 (0820GMT).
