A member of Harley-Davidson’s board of directors resigned suddenly this week, listing several of his concerns about how the company is being run and the future of the iconic brand.
Jared Dourdeville, partner at New York-based H Partners Management, had been an independent director at Harley-Davidson since 2022.
In a letter dated April 5 , Dourdeville spelled out his numerous concerns. He also recommended that CEO Jochen Zeitz, lead independent director Tom Linebarger, and “long-tenured” board member Sara Levinson resign immediately. The company recently disclosed that it is seeking a new CEO as Zeitz is hoping to retire this year.
This is separate from a letter Harley-Davidson says Dourdeville sent on April 1 voicing his concerns.
While Dourdeville alleges shareholder returns under Harley’s current management team show “severe underperformance,” he has larger concerns with the company.
“What I am most concerned about are the foundational building blocks that underpin the company’s long-term trajectory: culture, transparency and accountability, and the willingness of the board and management to put the company first,” he wrote.
Dourdeville’s letter references what he describes as a “depletion” of Harley-Davidson. He said while he was aware most of the company’s white-collar employees work remotely most of the time, a recent discovery of the extent of work-from-home caused him alarm.
This, coupled with a “revolving door of senior leadership,” has further depleted the company’s culture, Dourdeville wrote.
He also called into question Zeitz’s “Hardwire” strategy, which relies heavily on re-investing in Harley’s core touring and cruiser lines despite those products not receiving “meaningful updates in more than a decade.”
“The outcome of Jochen (Zeitz’s) Hardwire strategy so far is worrying: touring and cruiser unit sales have declined over 20% since 2019, and the dealership network is flooded with excess inventory,” wrote Douderville.
Dourdeville also cited the company’s handling of a campaign run by political activist Robby Starbuck as another reason for his departure. Harley faced criticism last summer after Starbuck launched a social media campaign on X (formerly Twitter) aimed at “exposing” the company. He listed nearly 20 of his “concerns” with Harley, ranging from its involvement in pride events and trainings aimed at supporting the LGBTQ+ community, to its commitment to DEI policies and legislation. Harley later revised several of its polices, citing an “internal stakeholder review.”
“I believed that the company’s entire response to this incident was grossly mismanaged,” Dourdeville wrote. “I also believe that the incident may have had a material and lasting impact on customers’ relationship with the Harley-Davidson brand.”
Despite sharing numerous concerns with the company, representatives from Harley-Davidson say Dourdeville never vocalized any of these issue while serving as a member of the board.
In a letter addressing Dourdeville’s complaints, Harley-Davidson pointed out that during a February 2025 board meeting, he voted in favor of of re-electing all of the company’s directors.
“At that time, while the board was in the process of searching for a successor to the chief executive officer, Mr. Dourdeville and H Partners continued to support a long-term commitment from presiding director Linebarger to continue leading the company’s transformation,” the company states in the letter.
After reviewing three candidates in March as possible successors to Zeitz, the board decided not to offer the role to anyone at this time. This was the only time Harley says Dourdeville was a “dissenting voice” in the boardroom.
Harley also responded by saying Dourdeville has made misleading statements regarding the company’s response to the Robby Starbuck campaign, and that he is “well aware” the company is working to reduce dealer inventor and increase profitability.
Harley also defended Zeitz’s Hardwire strategy, saying Dourdeville supported the plan that was “central to his firm’s investment thesis.”
Read more articles about Harley-Davidson:
- Harley-Davidson searching for its next CEO with Jochen Zeitz planning to retire
- $365 million drop in Q4 leaves Harley sales down 11% for the year
- Harley revises some policies following DEI backlash on social media
- Harley-Davidson responds to online criticism of company’s policies and trainings
- Harley sees ‘customers sitting on the sidelines’ amid higher interest rates, uncertainty
- Harley CEO issues statement about company’s commitment to remote work, Milwaukee
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