Dive Brief:
- Claire McDonough, CFO of Rivian, is stepping down from her role to pursue new opportunities and will depart the company on Oct. 30, the electric vehicle maker announced on Friday. As CFO, she helped Rivian execute its $13.7 billion initial public offering in November 2021.
- The company said that an extensive executive search process is currently underway, and it’s evaluating both internal and external candidates for the CFO position. Derek Mulvey, Rivian’s VP of finance, is expected to be appointed interim CFO when McDonough departs in October.
- "Claire joined Rivian almost six years ago, and she’s had a meaningful impact on our business and our teams during a transformative period of growth,” Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said in a statement. “From guiding us through our IPO to building many of our financial operating frameworks, her strategic approach has helped strengthen our overall execution.”
Dive Insight:
Rivian said that Mulvey has worked closely with both Scaringe and McDonough on the company’s financial planning, strategic partnerships, capital allocation and investor relations, per the release, which will result in a more seamless transition when he takes over as CFO on Oct. 30. Mulvey joined Rivian in 2021, ahead of the startup’s IPO as well as its first deliveries that September, and he previously served as VP at financial services firm J. P. Morgan.
McDonough’s departure from Rivian comes as the company continues to narrow its losses after the launch of the new R2 SUV in June. Although Rivian has never posted a profit, the company reported a loss of $36 million in Q2 compared to $62 million in Q1. A year ago, it posted a much larger loss of $335 million in Q2.
In its July 30 earnings report, McDonough said that 2026 would be a “transition year” for Rivian as it continues to scale production of the lower-priced R2. However, she warned it may impact the company’s financial performance in Q3 before the company sees any improvement.
Executives said during the company’s Q2 earnings call that they expect headwinds to continue as Rivian navigates an uncertain EV market and sluggish sales. The company delivered just 12,194 EVs to customers in the second quarter.
Despite the challenges facing Rivian, the company raised its full-year guidance in July, targeting deliveries of 65,000 to 70,000 vehicles in 2026, up from its previous target of 62,000 to 67,000 units, following an increase in deliveries after the launch of the R2.
Rivian said in the release that McDonough and her team have built robust capital management frameworks and drove the cost-reduction initiatives required to achieve the company’s long-term gross margin targets. Rivian added McDonough also helped structure strategic partnerships.
“Beyond her work on our capital roadmap, Claire has been a trusted leader and partner across the organization,” Scaringe said in a statement. “While she will be missed, I’m thrilled that Derek is taking on the interim CFO role. Derek has worked incredibly closely with me, Claire and our leadership team for several years and will enable a seamless transition."
In its July earnings report, Rivian said it had approximately $5.3 billion in cash on hand. Also in July, the company completed a public offering of 86 million Class A shares, in which it raised roughly $1.3 billion.
"Serving as Rivian’s CFO alongside RJ and this exceptional team has been the highlight of my career. I am tremendously proud of everything we have accomplished together—from building and scaling the business with the launch of R1 and our commercial van to establishing the financial and operational foundation that will propel the company through the ramp of R2 and beyond,” McDonough said in a statement.
