Tesla’s Head Of Europe Leaves After “Disputes” With Elon Musk

Tesla’s Head of Europe has left the company after “disputes” with CEO Elon Musk, according to several media reports. 

Sascha Zahnd, formerly the company’s Vice-President Global Supply Chain, was rumored to have taken over the Head of Europe position shortly after the position became vacant last summer. His departure would mark a tenure at the role of slightly less than a year, though he had been with the company since 2016.

Germany’s Manager Magazin reported that his departure came as a result of “disputes” with Elon Musk. Color us shocked; we can’t imagine how anybody couldn’t get along with Elon Musk. 

“Anyone who ascends in the Tesla realm is quickly out in the open. This applies especially to everyone who belongs to the closest management team of Tesla boss Elon Musk (48),” the publication said.  

It continued: “Insiders report that Zahnd is leaving the company after less than a year in office. Tesla initially did not comment on the personnel on request. Insiders report disputes with Musk.”

Zahnd had been in charge of both sales and service in Europe and was also involved in the company’s ongoing Gigafactory project in Berlin.

Recall, it was less than a year ago that we reported on the company’s then head of European operations, Jan Oehmicke, leaving for a rival carmaker about a year after being lured away from BMW to work at Tesla. 

The turnover at Tesla, a company gaining notoriety for having a revolving door of executives tasked with being Musk’s “yes men”, continues to be noticeable.