& # 39; If Elon Listens To Her: Tesla Leader Must Keep Elon Musk In Chess

San Francisco / New York: By choosing Robyn Denholm to keep Elon Musk at bay, Tesla Inc. took those who know her, saying that her non-nonsense ways can be exactly what Mercurial CEO must come out of her own way.

"Everything about her is rational, reasonable and warm. I'm not surprised she got the job, "said Scott McNealy, co-founder and former head of Sun Microsystems Inc., in a telephone interview. "If Elon listens to her, he will be a way more successful."

As Tesla's chairman, Denholm, 55, will be responsible for the high duties of reining in celebrity CEO Musk and guiding an electric car manufacturer still in a phase with costly expansion and vulnerable to economic setbacks. While Tesla only celebrated a blowout quarter where a rare result was found, many analysts and investors suspended

Also read: Tesla begins to take orders for shorter range $ 45,000 Model 3

Leading responsibility for raising the list of musk can be particularly difficult. Tesla's board, as Denholm has been on since 201[ads1]4, proved not to be effective in controlling some of its worst impulses this summer. Her ascension to the role of chairman was ruled out by Musk's purchases with the US Securities and Exchange Commission over her problematic private private receipts.

Denholm started his career at Auditing and Accounting Services at Arthur Andersen, leaving the company for a position in the finance department of Toyota Motor Corp.'s Australian subsidiary. She joined the Sun in 1996 and was there for 11 years, among other things, a position in the cutting-edge data company's top management team. She refused to be interviewed.

& # 39; Supremely Competent & # 39;

Musk, 47, is a classical Silicon Valley founding type, an eccentric visionary that is highly focused on products. Board members who monitor them have often been the CEO, or led companies in other strategic roles. A chairman with a financial background is not as common, but in Tesla's case it can actually be a strength: The report with the financial community is exactly what the car manufacturer is trying to improve.

"She seems to have high expertise in financial economics communication," said Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, an expert on leadership as a teacher at Yale School of Management. "Of the likely choices, I think they made the best choice. Her strength is not his and vice versa. "

Still, someone sees Denholm as close to Musk. A settlement reached with the SEC in September stipulated that Tesla forces a board that is long criticized for being too closely adapted to its billionaire.

Denholm" gives a potential spark for change, "said Gene Munster of Loup Ventures in a note. But Tesla has to move on with other actions, including turning over half of the board to bring board members with production experience, he said.

No Pushover ]

After the sun, Denholm worked on network equipment manufacturer Juniper Networks Inc., where she was CEO and CFO. Her technology-based background is an advantage: Teslas cars are constantly gaining new features through over-the-air software updates, and the company's batteries are still more sold to utility companies. Denholm also served on the board of ABB Ltd., the Swedish-Swiss multinational, working closely with tools.

"Robyn is very smart, thaw ft and ethical, "said William F. Meehan, a senior lecturer at Stanford Graduate School of Business, who was Juniper's Director while she worked there.

Denholm joined Telstra, Australia's largest telephone company, in January 2017 as chief executive officer and took the role of CFO on October 1st. Her decision to go down from CFO role so quickly surprised many; just last month, she told Australian media through a spokesman that she did not violate Tesla's job. Denholm, who is married and has adult children, lives in Sydney, and it is not clear whether she will move back to California for the manager's job.

"Robyn is fearless, but very practical. If she believes in something she's fighting for it-she's not a pushover," said Joe Pollard, Telstra's former chief executive officer, in an interview. "She's always focused on" how we will solve this problem. "Nothing is left unnoticed and she will always speak for customers, businesses and employees."

As Silicon Valley has the business world in Australia A long way to go to gender equality and Denholm is passionate bringing more women to science, technology and engineering, and establishing a scholarship in her name at the University of New South Wales.

"She is not part of the brother culture, and yet there is no naive skydiving in the outside , says Yales Sonnenfeld. «19659003] Also read: Elon Musk wanted to impress the girlfriend with $ 420 price: SEK

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