Fiat's U.S. Sales Chief Leaving Auto Maker
March 04 2020 - 11:47AM
Dow Jones News
By Nora Naughton
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV said Wednesday its U.S. sales chief
and head of the Ram truck brand is leaving the company to pursue
outside interests, a departure that comes as the Italian-American
auto maker pursues a merger with France's PSA Group.
Reid Bigland, who filed a lawsuit last year -- since dismissed
-- alleging the company retaliated against him for cooperating with
a federal probe into its U.S. sales-reporting practices, will
depart April 3, Fiat Chrysler said. His duties will be assumed by
three other executives, including Jeff Kommor, who will take
responsibility for leading U.S. sales.
Mr. Bigland, a 22-year veteran of the company, couldn't
immediately be reached for comment.
The move comes as Fiat Chrysler, led by Chief Executive Mike
Manley, is working to solidify a merger deal announced last fall
with PSA to create one of the world's largest auto makers by
sales.
Mr. Bigland's whistleblower lawsuit alleged that the auto maker
cut his pay in retaliation for cooperating with the federal
investigation. At the time, the company said his pay was being
evaluated by its board. That lawsuit has since been dismissed,
according to court records and Mr. Bigland's lawyer.
Fiat Chrysler said all legal matters between the company and Mr.
Bigland have been resolved.
Mr. Bigland, who rose through the ranks under former chief
Sergio Marchionne and was a member of the company's top executive
council, had taken over various responsibilities over the years,
including leading luxury brands Alfa Romeo and Maserati. He also
oversaw the Ram pickup-truck brand, one of the auto maker's most
profitable divisions.
The 53-year-old executive helped lead the company through a
period of heady U.S. sales growth, including helping it post a
multi-year streak of monthly sales gains that impressed many in the
industry and was promoted by Mr. Marchionne to investors as
evidence of its post-bankruptcy turnaround.
However, the company's sales-reporting practice later became the
subject of a dealer lawsuit and a Securities and Exchange
Commission investigation, probing whether the company had been
inflating monthly results. The commission has said the practice
lasted from August 2012 to July 2016 and misled investors about the
state of the company's performance.
In 2016, Fiat Chrysler said it was revising its sales-tallying
methods and restated monthly sales going back several years,
revealing that its long-touted streak actually ended earlier than
previously stated.
The company last fall agreed to pay $40 million to settle claims
brought by the SEC that it had misled investors by paying dealers
to report fake sales. The practice lasted nearly four years, giving
investors the impression that the company was performing better
than it actually was, the SEC said at the time.
Fiat Chrysler said the company has since reviewed and refined
its policies on reporting vehicle sales.
--Christina Rogers contributed to this article.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 04, 2020 11:32 ET (16:32 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Fiat Chrysler Automobile... (NYSE:FCAU)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Fiat Chrysler Automobile... (NYSE:FCAU)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024