Gol, the largest national airline in Brazil, announced this Monday that its CEO, Paulo Kakinoff, will become a member of the company’s Board of Directors and will replace him as CEO, as of July 1, the current Vice President of Operations, Celso Ferrer.
“We are delighted to announce Celso Ferrer as CEO of Gol,” said Kakinoff. Celso and I have worked side by side for more than seven years. He is an experienced and well prepared executive ; one of the most competent I have met in my entire professional career,” he added.
As CEO since 2012, Kakinoff has led the company through some of the industry’s biggest challenges, in turbulent times that transformed the GOL customer experience. “We have a strong leadership team and our board of directors has always dedicated itself, in a disciplined manner, to its fundamental role of overseeing a well-structured succession plan for the main leadership positions, ” said Constantino de Oliveira Júnior, president of the airline. “Kakinoff has been an outstanding CEO for the past decade and has led an excellent group of leaders to run our company for the next decade. We are excited for the opportunity to continue working together.”
Celso Ferrer, 39, is a GOL executive with many years of experience. He joined the airline in 2003 and since then has held positions that include Planning and Operations. He is a Boeing 737 pilot and has a degree in Economics from the University of São Paulo, a degree in International Relations from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo and an MBA from INSEAD.
“I am honored and excited to be asked to serve as CEO,” said Ferrer. “The core of GOL is our Eagles Team; they make a difference to our customers, and I look forward to serving them. I have an excellent team of leaders, many of whom I have had the pleasure of working with for many years.”