Former chief of Fiat Powertrain Technologies China joins Geely
Former CEO of Fiat Powertrain Technologies China Freeman H. Shen has joined Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. and become Geely's vice president for overseas business.
Shen confirmed to Automotive News China that he joined Geely on December 1.
He will bring along a wealth of overseas experience. After gaining masters degrees in both engineering and business administration from U.S. universities, he worked for Fortune 500 companies from North America and Europe for many years, including TXU Group, Eaton Corporation and BorgWarner Inc.
Shen then returned to China and until this month he was chairman or board member for Fiat Group's JV or wholly owned subsidiaries in Chongqing, Hangzhou and Shanghai.
Chinese who return to the motherland after making it to senior executive level in the overseas operations of global automakers are comparatively rare. But in this respect, Shen will not be alone at Geely.
Frank Zhao, a former research executive for technical affairs at DaimlerChrysler AG, returned to China in 2004. After serving as technology chief of Shenyang Brilliance Jinbei Automobile Co., he joined Geely in 2006 as vice president for research and development.
