Mary Barra, chairman and CEO of General Motors, participates in an Economic Club of Washington discussion on “the auto industry’s transformation to an all-electric future, the path to autonomous vehicles and recent negotiations with GM staff in Washington, USA. , December 13, 2023.
Elisabeth Frantz | Reuters
DETROIT – General engines CEO and Chairman Mary Barra said Thursday she has no plans to retire anytime soon as she tries to ensure the company’s transformation is “on a good path.”
Barra, the longest-tenured CEO other than the company’s founder, has been asked about his retirement for several years. The questions have grown as competitor executives have come and gone under Barra’s decade-plus tenure as GM.
“I’m having a lot of fun and I want to make sure we get our transformation on the right track,” she said during a fireside chat at a meeting of the Detroit Economic Club. “So I’m young and in good health, I have a supportive family, so I don’t think I’m going anywhere anytime soon.”
Many potential successors have come and gone within GM during Barra’s tenure. Some left the company for other opportunities, while others retired or left the company for unspecified reasons.
Barra reiterated that she serves at the pleasure of the GM board and continues to have “fun.” She said she is experiencing “the most exciting time” for the automotive industry during her career.
GM, like other automakers, is investing billions of dollars in all-electric vehicles, despite consumer adoption coming more slowly than many expected just a few years ago.
The Detroit automaker is also trying to restart its Cruise autonomous driving business after suspending public operations following an Oct. 2 accident in which a pedestrian was dragged 20 feet by a Cruise robotaxi in San Francisco.
Cruises and electric vehicles, along with software-defined vehicles and services, were among the biggest potential growth areas under Barra, who became CEO in January 2014.