Stellantis Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer, a holdover from the company’s pre-merger days as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, will leave his post at the end of June.

The company, which owns the Jeep, Ram, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat brands, announced on Wednesday that his replacement would be Natalie Knight, who is currently chief financial officer of global food retailer Ahold Delhaize. She’ll be based in Auburn Hills, where Stellantis has its U.S. headquarters.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said he’s delighted that Knight is joining the company.

“She has worked across several industries in both the U.S. and Europe. With her experience and demonstrated business transformation leadership, including a clear ESG focus, she is exactly the right leader to continue accelerating Stellantis’ Dare Forward 2030 strategy,” Tavares said in a news release, referencing the acronym for environmental, social and governance issues. “I’m convinced that she will play a strategic role in setting the new impetus and unleashing the great potential of Stellantis’ value.”

Palmer will stay on until June 30 “to ensure a smooth handover, after a distinguished 20-year career with the company,” the release said. Tavares thanked Palmer for his work.

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“Carrying over from Richard’s successful history with FCA, he has significantly contributed to the success of the merger to form Stellantis and to its integration over the past two years,” Tavares said.

Palmer was described as "the most important executive at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles that most people — outside of the company and Wall Street — never see," according to a 2015 Free Press article on his impact.

The article noted that Palmer implemented much of the vision of the late Sergio Marchionne, the legendary FCA CEO who was credited with saving both Fiat and Chrysler. Palmer remained chief financial officer following the merger of FCA and Peugeot maker PSA Group in 2021.

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Knight, a graduate of the University of Arizona and Freie Universitat in Berlin, is set to begin her new role on July 10. She has held numerous positions during her career.

“Prior to joining Ahold Delhaize in early 2020, Natalie Knight was the CFO at Arla Foods in Denmark, and held several senior finance positions during her 17 years at Adidas AG in Germany and the U.S., after Investor Relations roles at BASF and Bankgesellschaft Berlin,” the release said.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Stellantis' next chief financial officer brings different background