Komatsu, who became team principal ahead of the 2024 season, said he had wanted to change the race management team since early last year after spotting weaknesses.
Haas’ changes include the appointment of a new chief race engineer and sporting director, both common positions left unfilled by the low-budget team last season.
The new chief race engineer is Francesco Nenci, who recently worked on Audi’s Dakar Rally program and has F1 experience with Sauber and Toyota. Mark Lowe, former Haas operations team manager, will be sporting director.
“I felt the trackside team was one of the weakest areas last year, and the more competitive the car became, the more exposed it was,” Komatsu said.
“At the end of the year we had the fifth fastest car. But in terms of performance, we should have finished P6 [in the constructors’ championship] but we didn’t.
“Part of it was that we left too many points on the table because of the trackside operation. So it really needed a step up.”
Cridelich, from France, follows other female strategy leaders, including Hannah Schmitz, chief strategy engineer at Red Bull. Ruth Buscombe and Bernie Collins, who previously worked at Sauber and Aston Martin, have both since moved on to careers in television programming.
Haas has a unique structure where their internal operations have been reduced as much as possible through their partnership with Ferrari.
Haas uses Ferrari’s wind tunnel, has its design team in Maranello, Italy and buys almost all Ferrari parts allowed by the rules for their car, designing only the aerodynamic surfaces and chassis.
They are based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, but the racing team operates from a modest factory in Banbury, Oxfordshire.
Komatsu said this will be the first year Haas will have enough budget to reach the F1 budget cap. A further change in approach is that it won’t be using Ferrari’s latest redesigned front suspension, preferring to stick with last year’s design for consistency in aerodynamic research.
Haas finished seventh last year, ahead of Racing Bulls, Williams and Sauber, and Komatsu said his goals were “focused on consistency”.
“In the history with Haas over the years, I don’t think we’ve been competitive through the seasons in a similar way,” he said.
He added that he had ambitions to further improve the squad, which he said was “punching above its weight” due to its limited resources.
“WHO [else] does it only have 300 people or does it work out of a building like this?” Komatsu said.
“If Williams were to perform to their potential, there’s no way we could beat them. I want to get to a place where we can beat people like that on merit without people screwing it up.”
