The departure of the head of hardware at General Motors Company’s (NYSE:GM) Cruise self-driving unit marks another pivotal exit following the suspension of U.S. operations last fall. Carl Jenkins, the senior vice president for autonomous vehicle platforms, disclosed his resignation after six years at the company. Cruise Co-President Mo Elshenawy confirmed Jenkins’ departure, emphasizing the critical role of the autonomous vehicles platforms team in the efforts to resume vehicle operations as soon as possible, according to Reuters.

Earlier this year, General Motors (GM) acknowledged a leadership failure in response to an accident involving its Cruise robotaxi, which led to the suspension of the driverless fleet. Last October, a pedestrian was struck by a Cruise autonomous vehicle in a hit-and-run accident. The Cruise vehicle hit the pedestrian and, mistaking it for a side impact rather than a frontal one, dragged the pedestrian for 20 feet before coming to a halt, causing serious injuries. Subsequently, the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked GM’s driverless permits for the failure to disclose the maneuver of the Cruise AV after the impact.

Market Outlook: GM’s (GM) refocus on profitability has begun to restore investor confidence in the stock. Shares of GM have rebounded by almost 20% from their low point during the fall when the United Auto Workers strike was ongoing and negative Cruise headlines were prevalent. The Seeking Alpha Quant Rating on the Detroit automaker is at Strong Buy.