Incoming Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa, head of the company’s Americas operations, greets a Windsor Assembly Plant employee during an event celebrating Chrysler’s 100th anniversary on June 6, 2025.
Stellantis
DETROIT — “Mediocrity is not worth the trip.”
That was part of incoming Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa’s first public message after being named to lead the global automaker. It was a mantra decades in the making, as he spent 25 years climbing through the company’s ranks, starting from a role as a night shift paint shop supervisor in Spain.
The quote also referenced late Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, a mentor of Filosa’s who’s revered in the company. Marchionne unexpectedly died in 2018, years before the automaker merged to form Stellantis, the parent for brands such as Jeep, Ram, Fiat and Chrysler.
Several former and current Stellantis executives and employees who have worked with Filosa highlighted his connection to Marchionne when speaking with CNBC. They also described him as an engaging, collective leader who knows the business well, from the factory floors to C-suite offices, but who faces a slew of challenges and tests ahead.
As Filosa officially steps into the CEO role on Monday, he will need to channel Marchionne — viewed as a dynamic executive and thinker who saved Italian automaker Fiat and America’s Chrysler — to be successful in turning around the embattled carmaker.
John Elkann, chairman of Fiat SpA, center left, and Sergio Marchionne, chief executive officer of Fiat SpA and Chrysler Group LLC, center right, look at the new Jeep Renegade SUV automobile, produced by Chrysler Group LLC, as it stands on display at the company’s stand on the opening day of the 84th Geneva International Motor Show in Geneva, Switzerland.
Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The most recent CEO, Carlos Tavares, who spearheaded the merger to form Stellantis, abruptly resigned in December amid disagreements with the company’s board, yearslong sales declines and a 70% drop in net profit last year. He, like Marchionne, was considered a dynamic CEO by those inside and outside the company, but many thought he focused too much on cost cuts, to the detriment of the business.
In addition to financial issues, industry experts said Filosa will need to continue to mend bonds with dealers, politicians and employees that were damaged during Tavares’ tenure. And he’ll have to handle the company’s investment plans between traditional vehicles and “electrified” models such as hybrids and EVs.
“We need to manage the transition, right? It’s not a secret that electric vehicles will be [a] strong part of the future, right? Not only for Stellantis, but for the automotive industry itself,” Filosa, then-Stellantis’ head of the Americas, told reporters in January. “The pace and the speed, probably something that needs to be slightly reassessed.”
Filosa, at that time, said it will be on the new CEO to decide the pace. He described the company’s issues as “a multitask challenge” for whoever the board would appoint, which ultimately was him.
unprecedented open letter condemning Tavares’ actions.
“Your own distribution network, your dealer body, has been left in an anemic and diminished state,” Kevin Farrish, a dealer in Virginia who led the council, wrote in the letter.
Michael Bettenhausen, a dealer in Illinois who succeeded Farrish, has spoken fondly of Filosa but said there is still a lot of work to get done.
2025 Jeep Cherokee SUV
Stellantis
“We need to mutually work together and dive into all the issues here in the North American operations, and we look forward to Antonio still being a part of those discussions,” he said.
Stellantis’ global sales under Tavares fell 12.3% from 6.5 million in 2021 — the year the company was formed — to 5.7 million in 2024. That included a roughly 27% collapse in the U.S. in that period to 1.3 million vehicles sold. The automaker dropped from fourth is U.S. sales to sixth, falling from an 11.6% market share to 8% during that timeframe.
Filosa — a native of Naples, Italy — said in January the top priority for the U.S. was to grow retail market share, which includes sales to customers as opposed to those to fleets or businesses.
“We need to do that. It’s not a belief; it’s a need,” he said. “The U.S. retail market share really measures your ability to organically [grow sales].”
The automaker remains in a product dearth, bringing its overall sales down roughly 12% during the first quarter of this year compared with the same period a year earlier. The company declined to release its year-to-date retail sales.
But new products such as the upcoming redesigned Jeep Cherokee, additional Ram 1500 pickup truck models and a new gas-powered Dodge Charger are expected to boost sales, as well as the automaker’s top line.
Stellantis’ revenue has grown since the company was formed but plummeted 17.2% year-over-year in 2024 to 156.9 billion euros ($180.6 billion), while other automakers such as General Motors and Ford Motor saw notable increases in their top lines.
“Filosa steps into the CEO role amid significant challenges for the company,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Tom Narayan wrote in a May 28 investor note. “His immediate priorities include revitalizing the company’s performance in the US market, streamlining Stellantis’ extensive 14-brand portfolio, and mending strained relationships with dealers, unions, and governments.”
told Bloomberg in late May in his first interview with international media since leaving the company. “Hopefully, he will be properly supported by the board. So let’s see.”
Since being announced as CEO on May 28, Filosa has visited many of the automaker’s plants in the U.S., Canada and Europe. He was reportedly chosen following a six-month search that included other internal and external candidates.
His public comments regarding his new position have painted him as a humbled, grateful executive and father who takes pride in connecting with people.
“I am truly honored to be appointed CEO of this great company, Stellantis. It has been my home for 25 years. This place is in my blood,” he said a May 28 LinkedIn post, referencing Marchionne.