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Danone: Emmanuel Faber ousted from the presidency and replaced by the ex-boss of Legrand

2021-03-15T08:04:38.302Z


The group has been experiencing difficulties since the appearance of the Covid-19 pandemic which greatly affected its sales.


Change in the chairmanship of Danone.

Emmanuel Faber was sidelined from this function on Sunday evening by the board of directors of the French agri-food giant.

Contested by shareholders hostile to his governance, he is replaced by the former boss of the manufacturer of electrical equipment Legrand, Gilles Schnepp, announced Le Figaro.

This information was officially confirmed on Monday morning in a press release which refers to a decision "with immediate effect".

Gilles Schnepp, 62, has been elected Chairman of the Board of Directors.

While waiting to find a new "international" general manager, an interim duo has been appointed "to ensure operational continuity".

It is made up of a general manager, Véronique Penchienati-Bosetta, and a deputy general manager, Shane Grant.

A slingshot lasting several weeks

Emmanuel Faber, 57, had been CEO since 2014 and CEO since 2017. For several weeks he faced a sling of shareholders, who notably demanded the separation of the functions of Chairman and CEO, in order to restore a new force to the group, battered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

He dropped ballast on March 1, the council voting the principle of the separation of the two positions, the outgoing CEO retaining the presidency.

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The investment fund Artisan Parters, which campaigned for the departure of Emmanuel Faber, however, as of March 2, urged "strongly the council to review its position".

This fund, Danone's third shareholder with around 3% of the capital, called for the appointment “immediately” of a “truly independent” chairman.

Gilles Schnepp takes over the chairmanship of Danone.

AFP / Jacques Demarthon

Artisan Partners and another shareholder fund, Bluebell Capital Partners, wanted Emmanuel Faber to leave outright, believing that, under his leadership, Danone has declined compared to its main competitors.

The arrival of Gilles Schnepp at the head of Danone responds to the wishes of these two funds.

He had just been appointed vice-chairman of the board, alongside Cécile Cabanis, the former chief financial officer of Danone.

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These shareholders also demanded that the reorganization and cost reduction plan launched by Emmanuel Faber be at least suspended.

Called “Local First”, this plan, currently being negotiated with the unions, aims, according to the outgoing management, to make Danone more “agile” and to generate savings by removing hierarchical layers.

Up to 2,000 job cuts are planned, including several hundred in France.

Source: leparis

All business articles on 2021-03-15

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