This is due to Xpeng's recent organizational restructuring and personal matters, the company said in an announcement.
(Members of Xpeng's executive team shown on its website. From left to right are Xpeng chairman and CEO He Xiaopeng, co-founder and president Henry Xia, vice chairman and president Brian Gu, and co-founder and senior vice president He Tao.)
Henry Xia, co-founder and president of Xpeng Motors, resigned as an executive director of the company's board of directors effective November 30, according to a Hong Kong Stock Exchange announcement today.
This is due to Xpeng's recent organizational restructuring and personal matters, the announcement said.
Mr. Xia confirmed that he has no disagreement with the board and that the Xpeng board thanked him for his contribution during his tenure as executive director, the announcement said.
Xpeng's current board consists of seven members, including one executive director, three non-executive directors and three independent non-executive directors, according to a separate announcement.
They are:
Executive director: He Xiaopeng
Non-executive directors: Chen Yingjie, Liu Qin, Fu Jixun and Yang Fei
Independent non-executive directors: Yang Donghao, Qu Fang, Zhang Hongjiang
Xpeng's two announcements did not provide anything more, but according to local media Cailian, Xia's future efforts will be more focused on the product and dedicated to further improving its competitiveness.
On October 21, Jiemian cited sources as saying that Xpeng was undergoing an organizational restructuring, with the biggest change being that it would move to a business unit-based management structure to improve the previously overly centralized structure that had dragged down operational efficiency.
The immediate reason for Xpeng's organizational restructuring is the problems with the G9 launch -- complex and incomprehensible product SKUs, product planning divorced from user needs and marketing failures, Jiemian's report said, citing a source familiar with the matter.
He Xiaopeng, the company's chairman and CEO, hopes the move will lead to an overall improvement in previously overly centralized management, reduce communication costs and get close to users to understand real user needs, the report said.
In a November 1 statement announcing Xpeng's October delivery figures, Mr. He confirmed that he had recently made organizational changes to the company.
"I've recently optimized our organizational structures and am confident that we are better aligned with customer demands and market trends with our differentiated Smart EV products," Mr. He said at the time.
On November 8, Cailian reported that Xpeng's organizational structure is nearing completion, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Xpeng delivered 5,101 vehicles in October, down 39.76 percent from 8,468 in September and down 49.68 percent from 10,138 in the same month last year.
The company will report its third-quarter earnings later today, and its November delivery figures are expected to be known tomorrow.
