Edward Whitacre will step down as CEO of General Motors on September 1 and as chairman of the board by the end of the year.

Dan Akerson (picture), 61, who has served on the GM board of directors since July 2009, will become CEO and chairman by the end of the year, ensuring a smooth transition and continued positive momentum for the company. 

Whitacre, 68, joined GM as chairman of the board on July 10, 2009. On December 1, 2009, he was named chief executive officer. He led the company after it emerged from a historic bankruptcy to become a profitable automaker again.

In addition to serving on the GM board since July 2009, Akerson has had a distinguished career in finance as a managing director at the Carlyle Group and in telecommunication, serving as chairman and chief executive officer of XO Communications and at Nextel Communications. He was also chairman and CEO of General Instrument Corp.