Report: Tesla Board Moved Toward Opening Search for Musk's Replacemement

One of the questions that keeps coming up about Elon Musk and Tesla is why the automaker’s board would allow him to remain CEO after such bumpy performances and so much drama over the last year. However, while it’s unlikely the board would remove Musk as chief executive, a recent report from the Wall Street Journal shows that the wheels of succession might be turning at Tesla. Before going too far, however, it's important to note that both Musk and the Tesla board have vehemently denied the reports, accusing the WSJ of publishing false stories.

Board members have been urging Musk to return to a more prominent role at Tesla for a while, telling him he needed to announce the move publicly, which he did. At the same time, the board reportedly started vetting executive search firms and had zeroed in on one to help find Musk’s replacement.

His involvement with the White House added another item to Musk’s pile of business engagements, which included five companies. Some at Tesla said they’d gone months without seeing him, and others reported meeting with Musk remotely as he spent time in Washington and President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.

All of that sounds dramatic, but some analysts expect Musk to remain rooted as Tesla’s CEO for the foreseeable future. They say that Musk appears to have satisfied the board’s demands by stepping back from his governmental efforts, though it’s unclear if his time there will make his return to Tesla better or worse for the automaker, given his deeply polarizing public persona.

[Images: Tesla]

Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.