LiveWire names industry veteran as CEO
LiveWire has announced the hire of Karim Donnez as chief executive officer (CEO), effective June 12, 2023. Donnez will succeed current CEO Jochen Zeitz who, having served as CEO for an agreed period, will remain as chairman of LiveWire Group, Inc.
“Having successfully stood-up LiveWire as a brand and listed the company on the NYSE, I’m excited to pass the baton to Karim and to welcome him as LiveWire’s new CEO, following an extensive global search process,” says Zeitz, chairman, president and CEO of Harley-Davidson. “Karim is an entrepreneurial business leader with a demonstrable track record of driving transformational growth through both strategy development and implementation. The Board and I look forward to Karim realizing the potential of LiveWire, as we continue on the company’s journey to lead the electrification of the sport.”
Donnez joins LiveWire from BRP where he was most recently president of BRP’s Marine Group. He held various roles since joining the company in 2015, including SVP, Strategy, Business Development and Transformation.
Prior to joining BRP, Donnez held leadership positions at Rio Tinto, most recently as general manager, Refinery & Energy for Rio Tinto Kennecott, where he oversaw business transformation initiatives as part of corporate global functions. Donnez holds an MSc in Engineering from Arts et Métiers ParisTech and an MBA from HEC Montréal.
