I've been watching Harley-Davidson stories closely ever since the brand's CEO, Jochen Zeitz, announced his retirement earlier this week. When something like that occurs, there's always fallout to come. So when I saw the story of a Harley board member resigning, I figured this was just part of that. But when I read his resignation letter, it felt...off.
I've been writing about the automotive and powersport industries for decades now. In that time, I've read resignation letters from multiple executives. Most, even in dour circumstances not of their choosing, remain professional. They offer criticism, sure, but they're still looking after the company's best interests. Plus, it's never a good look to badmouth folks.
But the letter from Jared Dourdeville of H Partners Management, one of the Motor Co's biggest partners, felt more in line with disgraced and disgruntled former Nissan CEO, and current fugitive from the Japanese government, Carlos Ghosn. I went to RideApart's slack and told the site's editors, "This feels like he got passed over for CEO, and less about the issues he says caused his departure."
