Olney during his tour of the Middle East in mid-2013
Current president of Volvo Construction Equipment, Pat Olney, has announced his departure from the company, in order to take up a role with a non-competing, large engineering company in the USA.
According to Olney, 44, the position offered was “simply too good to pass up”, with a long-harboured ambition to relocate to North America.
“I have had a long and rewarding career with Volvo, and for that I will always be grateful. As such, this was not an easy decision.
Olney joined Volvo CE in 1996 and held a number of top management positions in finance, operations and general management before he was appointed as president in 1 May 2011. He will remain in the position until the end of the year, as the search begins for his replacement.
Olney recently visited the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and was interviewed in the May edition of Construction Machinery Middle East.
“Pat has done an excellent job during his career with Volvo I regret that he has decided to leave Volvo,” said Olof Persson, president and CEO of the Volvo Group. “At the same time I fully understand and respect his desire to move to North America for professional and personal reasons.”
Early trading on the Swedish stock exchange following the announcement saw Volvo’s share price fall by 0.85%.