Officially the CEO and President Now
After former CEO and president Matt Levatich stepped down from his role, Jochen Zeitz was named acting president and CEO of the company. Now Harley has named him as the official CEO and president, according to the Milwaukee Business Journal. This comes after Zeitz announced a new strategy for Harley in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Zeitz has been a member of the Harley-Davidson board and is the former CEO of Puma. He will continue to serve as chairman of the board.
“As the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 crisis and recovery persists and given the significant changes that are needed at the company, solidifying Jochen as CEO demonstrates both the board’s confidence in him and Jochen’s commitment to leading the company through this extraordinary time,” Thomas Linebarger, director of the company’s board said in a press release. “His two decades of experience as Chairman & CEO of a leading global company and brand, and his enthusiasm and determination to challenge everything about the company based on his turnaround experience is exactly what we need right now to lead Harley-Davidson to long term success.”
Zeitz is said to have the unequivocal support of the board. A member of the board since 2007, he started the company’s sustainability committee and has been passionate about Harley and its endeavors. It will be interesting to see how Zeitz institutes change over the next few years, and what he does to try to turn Harley around.