Electrify America names Robert Barrosa next CEO; Palazzo to take EV post at VW

Electrify America has tapped Robert Barrosa, who leads the charging company’s infrastructure development and product planning, as its next president and CEO.

Current president and CEO Giovanni Palazzo will become chairman of Electrify America’s board and global senior vice president of charging and energy for parent company Volkswagen Group.

Palazzo, 48, will take his chairman post Feb. 15 and begin his job at Volkswagen July 1. Barrosa, 48, will assume his role as Electrify America president and CEO June 1, the company said in a statement Monday.

Barrosa is the senior director of sales, business development and marketing for Electrify America. He leads business and infrastructure development, product planning, business partnerships, marketing and e-commerce.

Barrosa also manages Electrify America’s home, commercial and energy services. He has been with the company since 2018, focusing on technology, energy management, product planning and infrastructure development. Barrosa has been in the EV infrastructure space for more than 16 years, with posts at EVgo, NRG Energy and AeroVironment.

Barrosa’s “background as an electric vehicle charging engineer, combined with his strategic business approach, will help us continue bringing the latest in EV charging technology to our customers,” Palazzo said in the statement.

Palazzo has been president and CEO of Electrify America since 2018. He spent more than seven years at Volkswagen Group in the mobility and digital retail space.

With Palazzo at the helm, Electrify America expanded to more than 800 charging stations and 3,500 chargers and established charging agreements with more than 17 EV manufacturers. The company also launched Electrify Home for residential chargers and Electrify Commercial for fleet owners and other businesses.

“It’s been a privilege to work with such an incredibly talented team and to oversee the tremendous strides Electrify America has made in electric vehicle infrastructure and the promotion of EV adoption over the past several years,” Palazzo said. “We look forward to Rob Barrosa’s continued leadership as Electrify America continues to evolve and expand on our mission toward a more sustainable future.”