- After about a year in the position
- Praise, thanks and good wishes for Brennan
- Paul Weibel taking over
(exechange) — Hesperia, California, June 4, 2024 — Susan Brennan, chief executive of 5E, leaves her position. As announced by 5E Advanced Materials Inc. in a news release and in a regulatory filing published on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, Susan Brennan has left her post as chief executive officer at the boron and lithium company, after about a year in the role, effective June 3, 2024.
Generally speaking, it raises questions when a CEO leaves her post abruptly and after a short tenure.
Susan Brennan’s duties as CEO will be taken over by Paul Weibel, previously Chief Financial Officer at 5E Advanced Materials Inc.
It is a generational change. Paul Weibel is about 21 years younger than Susan Brennan.
Susan Brennan’s move coincides with a management shake-up also involving the positions of Vice President of Engineering and Construction; and Chief Strategy Officer.
“Accelerating growth”
5E did not give an explicit reason for Susan Brennan’s departure from the CEO post. David Salisbury, Chairman of the Board, stated: “As the Company’s strategic priorities shift, this change in leadership will focus our next steps on accelerating growth, executing on customer and market catalysts, and further enhancing shareholder value.”
Precise information regarding Susan Brennan’s future plans was not immediately available.
“Resignation”
5E said: “Effective June 3, 2024, the Company announces the resignation of Chief Executive Officer Susan Brennan.”
5E further said: “On June 3, 2024, Susan Brennan notified 5E Advanced Materials, Inc. … of her resignation as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and as a director of the Board of Directors of the Company …, effective as of June 3, 2024.”
Share price decline since June 2023
The announcement follows a decline in 5E Advanced Materials Inc.’s share price of 52% since June 2023.
In the position of CEO since 2023
Susan Brennan became CEO of the Company in 2023.
On March 21, 2023, the Board had appointed Susan Brennan as Chief Executive Officer effective April 24, 2023.
Susan Brennan was appointed as a Director in June 2023.
Brennan has served as the President of Susan Brennan Leadership, LLC, a consulting firm that advises companies in the energy, automotive, and technology industries, since October 2022.
Before launching Susan Brennan Leadership, LLC, Brennan served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Romeo Power, an energy technology leader delivering electrification solutions for complex commercial vehicle applications, from August 2021 to October 2022.
From November 2013 to August 2021, Brennan served as the Chief Operations Officer of Bloom Energy Corporation.
Previously, she spent decades in a variety of leadership positions in the automotive manufacturing industry, including at Nissan North America, the Ford Motor Company, and the Douglas and Lomason Company.
Brennan holds a Master of Business Administration in Economics from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from the University of Illinois-Campaign-Urbana.
No statement by Susan Brennan
In the release announcing her departure as CEO of 5E Advanced Materials Inc., Susan Brennan received praise, thanks and good wishes.
The announcement of her departure as CEO does not include a statement by Susan Brennan.
The above text is an excerpt from the exechange report 24.2024 ($), publication date June 10, 2024.