- ARCHIVES: Bombardier: The Snowmobile Legacy
Trading volume was very heavy with more than 90 million shares changing hands by the close.
The rail and aerospace company said it will create a new three-member office of the president, which will be chaired by Laurent Beaudoin, the company's current executive chairman.
Paul Tellier (file photo)
Beaudoin will be joined by his son Pierre Beaudoin, the president and chief operating officer of Bombardier Aerospace, and Andre Navarri, the president of Bombardier Transportation.
The company said the management change stemmed from Tellier's desire to leave Bombardier when his contract runs out in a year.
"I understand the board's concern that I would not be there for the long term to develop and execute strategies, and the need to reshape the management structure at this time," Tellier said in a statement.
Bombardier stock since Jan. 2003
After serving as CEO of CN Rail since 1992, Tellier took power at Bombardier on Jan. 1, 2003. One of his first major acts was to announce plans for the sale of the company's foundation – its snowmobile and recreational products division.
- FROM April 3, 2003: Bombardier unveils 'recovery' plan, sale of Ski-Doo division
"Considering the evolution of the business and our challenges at this point, the corporation has come to an agreement with Mr. Tellier and I am pleased that we are parting ways on good terms," he said.
Tellier also stepped down as a Bombardier board member. Two other board members, Michael McCain and Jalynn Bennett, also tendered their resignations.
Laurent Beaudoin – the son-in-law of company founder Armand Bombardier – became Bombardier's chairman and CEO in 1979. On February 1, 1999, he became board chairman.
Analysts suspect Tellier lost boardroom fight
Analysts speculated that Tellier was removed as CEO following a fight with the company's board.
"I guess it's implicitly a criticism of Mr. Tellier that he wasn't following their (the Beaudoin family) agenda in the way that they wanted," McGill University aviation analyst Karl Moore told CBC Business News.
National Bank Financial analyst Steve Laciak told Canadian Press that Tellier's sudden departure "implies to us that there was disagreement on some strategic issue."
"He obviously wanted to take Bombardier in a certain direction and Mr. Beaudoin disagreed," Laciak said.
Bombardier is the world's biggest maker of passenger trains and one of the biggest regional jet makers. But its jet business has suffered in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Tellier cut 16,000 jobs and closed factories as part of a plan to drastically cut costs. But profits failed to bounce back and the stock lost more than half of its value in the two years since Tellier's appointment was announced.
The company is now deciding whether to proceed with a $2-billion program to develop a larger "C" Series aircraft that would seat 110 to 135 passengers.
A decision is not expected until the spring.
