Many of my clients come to me for guidance on what package they should be offering for an upcoming leadership hire. I give them my insights, based on the intelligence gathered from daily conversations I have with industry leaders. Often this is greeted with pushback as this doesn't fit the fixed budget they'd planned for and I simply ask the company, do they want the best? If, so you need to hire the best.

The news from General Motors hiring the former Tesla battery chief this week, has reminded me of this!

The US EV and Battery boom shows no sign of stopping with so much investment and an influx of international players rooting themselves in the country, to take advantage of the major tax incentives and a rapidly maturing market. 

If you look at BEVs, this international influx, particularly from China, is now putting real pressure on the traditional OEMs like Ford and General Motors. It is not only Tesla and BYD they've got to worry about, there's also Geely, SAIC, NIO and Great Wall Motors hot on their heels! 

For GM in particular, it's been a rather stuttery couple of years with delays to rolling out their Ultium EV after continued battles with scaling up their battery pack production. No easy feat!

They simply had to act and they certainly did that this week! Securing the services of Kurt Kelty, the former Tesla battery chief, could be a game changer. Although his role will focus on future battery innovation programs, there's no doubt in my mind that Kelty will get their current stutters back on track. 

I applaud the ambition from GM for their big play here and it serves as a great example that if you want to be the best, you need to hire the best!

Hyperion Executive Search helps clients in Energy Storage and E-Mobility to hire the best leadership talent from around the world. If you're looking for the very best talent, get in touch today!