The heir to Fiat’s founding family has paid an emotional farewell to the late CEO Sergio Marchionne, who died suddenly in July, saying “he taught all of us … to have the courage to change.”
John Elkann, his voice cracking, echoed Marchionne’s indefatigable work ethic in his homage, saying “never take a break or a deep breath after a victory, because life doesn’t stop.”
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Marchionne, who turned around both Fiat and U.S. carmaker Chrysler to create FCA, died July 25 at the age of 66 after complications following shoulder surgery in a Swiss hospital.
The Turin cathedral was packed with Italian workers clad in assembly line jumpsuits and black-suited executives spanning decades of Fiat’s often difficult history. Mourners also included two former prime ministers, local officials and family members.
