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Harley-Davidson CEO to retire, Matt Levatich named as successor

MILWAUKEE,  WI.  Harley-Davidson, Inc. has named Matthew S. (Matt) Levatich, currently President and Chief Operating Officer of Harley-Davidson Motor Company, t...
Matt Levatich

MILWAUKEE,  WI.  Harley-Davidson, Inc. has named Matthew S. (Matt) Levatich, currently President and Chief Operating Officer of Harley-Davidson Motor Company, to succeed Keith Wandell as President and Chief Executive Officer of Harley-Davidson, Inc. upon Wandell’s retirement May 1, 2015. Levatich has also been elected, through Board action, to the Harley-Davidson Board of Directors.

Wandell, 65, became President and CEO of Harley-Davidson, Inc. May 1, 2009, and was elected Board Chairman in February 2012. During his tenure, the Company launched groundbreaking motorcycles, transformed manufacturing through a restructuring that is generating more than $300 million in annual savings and made significant gains in reaching new customers by growing international markets and sales to outreach segments in the U.S.

Levatich, 50, joined Harley-Davidson in 1994. Prior to becoming President and COO of Harley-Davidson Motor Company in May 2009, he held wide-ranging roles in the U.S. and Europe. Past leadership roles include Vice President and General Manager of Harley-Davidson’s Parts and Accessories business, Vice President of Materials Management, and President and Managing Director of the Company’s former MV Agusta business. In addition to an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Levatich holds a graduate degree in engineering management and an MBA from Northwestern University. He has served on the board of directors of Emerson, a St. Louis-based global manufacturing and technology company, since 2012.

“It’s a great honor to become the next CEO of this iconic company,” said Levatich. “As we look to the future, we believe there are tremendous opportunities to build on our many strengths. Harley-Davidson is one of the world’s most-powerful and revered brands, and through our strategies to provide unrivaled products and experiences for our customers, we aim to extend our reach and work to realize our full potential as a growing global company.”

Levatich and Harley-Davidson Chief Financial Officer John Olin discuss the leadership transition in a video that will be posted to the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at 8 a.m. (CST) Thursday, February 5, 2015: http://investor.harley-davidson.com.
Harley-Davidson has a manufacturing facility in York County.

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