Tesla has just rehired the former Supercharger manager it previously dismissed as part of the major layoffs in its global workforce. As the key team member returns, he shares some heartwarming words for the electric vehicle giant and its missions.
Ex-Tesla Manager rehired for Supercharger expansion
George Bahadue, Sr. Manager of Site Acquisition and Business Development for Tesla’s Commercial Charging, was among the 500 Supercharging team members CEO Elon Musk fired.
On Tuesday morning, Mr. Bahadue proudly shared on the popular social networking website LinkedIn that Tesla asked him to return to his former position.
Despite being dismissed in an unpleasant way, Mr. Bahadue decided to accept the offer. According to the Tesla Supercharger Manager, more work is still needed to expand electric vehicle uptake.
“Two weeks ago, I was asked to return to Tesla in my previous capacity heading up business development and site acquisition for Tesla charging – I accepted.”
George Bahadue, Tesla Supercharger Manager
Belief in Tesla’s mission
While it is a hard decision to return to a company that fired you, Mr. Bahadue’s valuation for his ambition to contribute to the shift to sustainable energy still prevailed.
The now-rehired Tesla Supercharger Manager even quoted the advice of his former leader, Rebecca Tinucci, in his LinkedIn post.
“You work at Tesla because you hope to have at least a small impact on our collective future – aspirationally, to leave the world better for our children and grandchildren and their children and grandchildren – by accelerating the transition to sustainable energy. And that mission is too important to allow any distractions.”
Rebecca Tinucci, Former Tesla Senior Director of Charging Infrastructure
Mr. Bahadue also acknowledges the significant role of the lack of charging infrastructure in decelerating the shift to electric vehicles. With his skills and expertise, he is optimistic that he can contribute to bridging this gap by returning to the Musk-led company. He also believes in Tesla’s mission of “changing the world.”
“One of my mentors told me to follow my heart. My heart is with our customers, our site hosts, all the stakeholders that make EV charging possible, and the Tesla mission of changing the world. Charging is still one of the main blockers to EV adoption and there is much work to be done. Over the years, we have forged amazing site host relationships and I’m excited to get back to working with them to solve this.”
George Bahadue, Tesla Supercharger Manager
Tesla remains committed to Supercharger network advancements
Despite firing the entire Supercharger team, Tesla CEO Elon Musk assured investors and customers that the company still plans to expand its already enormous charging network.
It also plans to focus on continuously improving the uptime rate of its Supercharger network to 100% across its already existing stations.
Moreover, CEO Musk also revealed plans to invest more than $500 million in expanding the Supercharger Network this year alone.
In 2023, Tesla hit its highest average uptime record in its Supercharger Network. Considering the recent changes in the entire Supercharger team, it would be interesting to see how Tesla could sustain or increase the uptime rate this year.
