Ulf Mark Schneider is to be the first outsider since 1922 to take on the role of Nestlé chief executive, the company has announced.
He is expected to join the business on 1 September for an introductory period, before replacing Paul Bulcke on 1 January, marking an end to 94 years of internal appointments to the helm of the Swiss food and drink giant.
Schneider – a German and US citizen – has been the CEO of Germany’s Fresenius healthcare group since 2003. He is a graduate of the University of St Gallen, Switzerland, with both a graduate and a doctoral degree, and he also holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Schneider said he was “honoured and excited” to join Nestlé. “This is a truly iconic global company with a proud heritage and tremendous future prospects… Nestlé’s industry leading global food and beverage business positions it well for advancing the vision of nutrition, health and wellness.”
There were two “very good” internal CEO candidates in Laurent Freixe, boss of the company’s US operations, and the chief of the Asian arm, Wan Ling Martello, claimed Warren Ackerman, head of global consumer staples at Societe Generale.
He said Schneider was probably favoured because “he brings something different to the table in terms of experience and a good track record in healthcare and understanding of the hospital and homecare channel, an increasing focus for Nestlé.”
At the 150th annual general meeting yesterday, the Nestlé board proposed current CEO Bulcke – who has held his position since 2008 – for election as chairman at the next AGM on 6 April 2017. Current chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe will not stand for re-election having reached the mandatory age of retirement after being with the company for 50 years.
Bulcke said: “I’m looking forward to working with Ulf Mark Schneider for Nestlé’s continued success. [He] brings… a wealth of proven and seasoned professional and personal skills, which will blend very well with Nestlé’s experienced management and company culture.”
No comments yet