DETROIT — General Motors has added former Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman and NBA COO and Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum to its board of directors, effective Thursday.
The additions expand GM’s board to 13 seats, seven of which are filled by women.
“Our diverse board of directors is a competitive advantage for GM as we work to deliver a better, safer and more sustainable world,” GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra said in a statement. “Mark and Meg will bring unique experiences to the board, especially in technology, brand building and customer experience.”
GM’s 12 independent directors have senior leadership and board experience in information technology, digital commerce, retail, higher education, investment management, international affairs, defense, transportation, cybersecurity and pharmaceuticals.
The automaker has said it plans to invest $27 billion in electric and autonomous vehicle development through 2025 and aims to have an all-electric light-vehicle lineup by 2035. GM has also said that it is working with dealers on technology and processes to simplify vehicle sales.
Whitman, 64, will bring additional expertise in technology after leadership roles at HP, eBay Inc. and Quibi Holdings, which provided a mobile-centric streaming service for short-form videos. She was president of Quibi from 2018 until it shut down late last year.
Whitman was CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co. from 2011-15 and chief executive of Hewlett Packard Enterprise from 2015-18, and she led eBay through a significant growth period from 1998 to 2008. She has an undergraduate degree in economics from Princeton University and an MBA from Harvard University.
“I have tremendous respect for the commitments Mary and her team are making and the culture they have been building,” Whitman said in the statement. “GM’s growth strategy has all the elements of a startup but with far greater scale, millions of customers and a strong underlying business.”
GM became the first automaker to have a board with majority female representation in 2019, and nearly five decades earlier, it was the first automaker to appoint a woman to the board: Catherine Cleary, president of First Wisconsin Trust Co.
Tatum, 51, has been the deputy commissioner and COO for the NBA, where he oversees global business operations, since 2014.
He is also responsible for global partnerships, marketing and the communications department. He joined the NBA in 1999. Tatum received a bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing from Cornell University and an MBA from Harvard University.
“GM is changing a more than 100-year-old business model and marshaling thousands of people and billions of dollars to drive solutions that matter for the environment, communities, businesses and investors,” Tatum said in the statement. “Joining the board and helping accelerate that change is an honor and I look forward to working with the GM team and my fellow directors to make it happen.”
GM’s board will stand for election June 14 at the annual shareholders meeting.