In the midst of cutting 1,400 salaries jobs in North America and Asia, Ford Motors is undergoing a leadership change.

Ford Motor has replaced Mark Fields as president and CEO with Jim Hackett, who previously oversaw the Ford subsidiary that works on autonomous vehicle.

Fields held the position for three years before electing to during which Ford's shares dropped 40 percent. Earlier this month during an virtual investors meetings, some unidentified investors said the share price indicated a "lack of confidence" in the company's direction, the New York Times reported.

“We’re moving from a position of strength to transform Ford for the future,” said Bill Ford, executive chairman who Hackett will report to, in a news release. “Jim Hackett is the right CEO to lead Ford during this transformative period for the auto industry and the broader mobility space. He’s a true visionary who brings a unique, human-centered leadership approach to our culture, products and services that will unlock the potential of our people and our business.”

Job Cuts

Ford Motor Co. still plans to shrink its salaried workforce in North America and Asia by about 10 percent as it works to boost profits and its sliding stock price, a source familiar with the plan told Reuters. A person briefed on the plan said Ford plans to offer generous early retirement incentives to reduce its salaried headcount by Oct. 1, but does not plan cuts to its hourly workforce or its production.

The cuts are part of a previously announced plan to slash costs by $3 billion, the person said, as U.S. new vehicles auto sales have shown signs of decline after seven years of consecutive growth since the end of the Great Recession.

To read more on the cuts, click here.