Tesla Motors (TSLA 1.04%) has built only a few thousand cars during its short lifetime, but it has already become a big deal. Its Model S sedan, Motor Trend's "Car of the Year," has found itself an avid following well beyond the eco-minded gadget geeks that made up most of the audience for electric cars before now.
That's huge. That Tesla has established itself as a credible competitor in a business with enormous barriers – and done so on a relative shoestring – to entry is arguably an even bigger achievement.
It's easy to be enthusiastic about Tesla's prospects. But there are good, serious reasons to be cautious as well – enormous challenges still lie ahead for the upstart Silicon Valley automaker. I created a premium research report on Tesla to help investors understand those challenges, and the opportunity presented by the company.
Following is an excerpt from the report, taking a look at Tesla's management. We hope you enjoy it.
Tesla's Management
Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk is a Silicon Valley rock star. A co-founder of the company that became PayPal, Musk made a fortune when PayPal was sold to eBay. He has invested much of that fortune in futuristic technologies: Beside his considerable investment in Tesla, Musk is also the CEO and CTO of private space exploration company SpaceX and chairman of SolarCity, a solar energy provider.
As Tesla's CEO, Musk has grown into the role and done a good job of bringing in high-quality executive talent. CTO JB Straubel is an expert in electric propulsion, and other key members of the management team were hired from prominent roles at companies including Apple, Ford, Toyota, and Daimler. Tesla's executive salaries are fairly modest by auto industry standards; as with many early stage companies, stock options are a key part of compensation.
Looking for more insight?
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