Embraer – following shareholder approval of the transaction with Boeing – has announced that current President and CEO Paulo Cesar de Souza e Silva will leave the role on 22 April at the end of his current two year elected term.
The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer said that his successor for the next term will be recruited externally and announced on or before the Ordinary General Assembly on 22 April.
“Paulo Cesar idealized the partnership with Boeing and led the negotiation process of the transaction that will bring Embraer and Brazil to a much more competitive and prominent level in the global aviation industry,” said Chairman of the Board, Alexandre Silva.
For 22 years at Embraer, Paulo Cesar came from the financial market to structure the company’s sales financing area. For six years he was President and CEO of Commercial Aviation and in 2013 launched the E2 Program, the medium-sized commercial jet.
In 2016, Paulo Cesar became President and CEO of the Embraer Group, with a mission to make the company more efficient, competitive and better prepared to face structural changes in the global aviation market.
His administration established three key initiatives focused on value creation and the sustainability of the company. The first was the transaction with Boeing.
The second was the creation of the Passion for Excellence program, a structural transformation project focused on reducing costs and increasing operational efficiency, generating significant annual recurring savings.
The third was the creation of EmbraerX, responsible for disruptive innovation and the development of opportunities for the future, such as eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle), a project that is set to revolutionise urban transport in partnership with Uber.
“Without the support of the Board and Embraer’s 18,000 employees and colleagues, none of our achievements would have been possible,” noted Paulo Cesar. “We are challenged to remain at the forefront of engineering and operations.
“In Executive Aviation and Defense, and with the KC 390 joint venture with Boeing, we will expand our international competitiveness and everything indicates that we will have another 50 years of success ahead.”
He added: “I am sure that the new leadership of the company will find fertile ground ahead to expand and consolidate Embraer.”
Paulo Cesar was invited to be a senior advisor to the board, with the task of facilitating the integration of the future President and CEO and advising the board on the monitoring of assets and resources segregation, an integral part of the process of concluding the partnership with Boeing.
As it was reported, 96.8 per cent of Embraer’s shareholders approved an agreement with the North American company last February, which should be concluded after obtaining all approvals of the Regulatory and Competitive Agencies in Brazil and abroad.