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.StellantisDETROIT — “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 ImagesThe 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.’Multitask challenge’Filosa, a relatively young CEO at 51 yea …
