At the head of PSA since 2014, the French Carlos Tavares has allowed the automotive group to recover, while the market is going through one of the worst storms in its history.
A method that has proven itself and that he intends to apply to the Fiat group, which is experiencing problems similar to those of Peugeot seven years ago.
The automotive group PSA, which has just married Fiat-Chrysler, is in great shape: despite the crisis, it has one of the highest profitability in the global automotive industry.
Yes and these performances, the French group owes them a lot to Carlos Tavares, the one who has directed PSA since 2014 and who has brilliantly recovered.
PSA today is 10% margin, a record while the auto market is going through the worst storm in its history.
Carlos Tavares has therefore just taken control of the new Franco-Italian-American group which produced 6 million cars last year.
His task is immense because, he tells us in an interview, Fiat has the same problems as PSA seven years ago.
He therefore intends to apply his method to the Italian group to straighten it out, knowing that the American branch, with a successful brand like Jeep, is doing well.
And what does this method consist of?
It is first and foremost that of an engineer who has spent his entire career in the automotive industry, he is a very sharp specialist in the sector, he knows all the details of the operation of a factory or a logistics chain. .
He is a real enthusiast, he is a rally driver, he is also someone who, when he arrived at PSA, was able to make an uncompromising diagnosis but above all mapped out the roadmap for the recovery in building on the strengths of the group.
Basically, he's a boss who knows how to tell his troops: we're not doing well, we can get by and even be very strong, it's going to be hard, but that's how we're going to do it and that's how long it takes go take.
In short, a speech that restores confidence because we know where we are going.
He applied his method to PSA, as we have said, but also to Opel, a sick German car manufacturer that he also saved after its takeover four years ago.
Which also earned him a reputation as a somewhat brutal manager ...
It's true, it goes fast, it cuts quickly.
He hates wasting time.
He says he asks his troops to stop with the presentations of 50 slides which are just used to show the leader that we have done a good job.
He was one of the very first bosses to switch completely to telework, 4 days out of 5. At the head of Stellantis, that's what the company is called.
group resulting from the merger between PSA and Fiat Chrysler, it will have to manage an empire which has more than 12 brands.
He will clearly no longer have time to take care of all the details.
But at least it's a group that has weathered the crisis better than many of its competitors.
Its an asset.