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A sign with the inscription “SAP” hangs on a building at the headquarters of the software company SAP.
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
The successor to the top position on SAP's supervisory board seemed to be in the clear.
Now the DAX group is throwing its planning overboard.
And receives criticism from shareholder representatives.
Walldorf - In May 2023, SAP management still seemed to be in a good mood.
At the general meeting in the Mannheim Arena of the same name, CEO Christian Klein, Supervisory Board Chairman Hasso Plattner and his then-designated successor Punit Renjen beamed into the cameras together.
Renjen was subsequently elected to the supervisory board with a large majority.
The change to the top of the committee this year seemed like a mere formality.
But on Sunday evening, Europe's largest software manufacturer surprisingly presented former Nokia manager Pekka Ala-Pietilä as Plattner's intended successor.
The company and Renjen had decided to part ways by mutual agreement, it said.
SAP cited different ideas about the future role of the chairman of the supervisory board as the reason.
According to reports, the American was not able to get used to the role of supervisor of the company's board of directors, which is legally required in Germany.
The “Manager Magazine,” among others, wrote that he was very actively involved in day-to-day business and that it not only brought joy.
“An excellent candidate”
A good year ago, when SAP introduced the former head of the consulting firm Deloitte as the intended successor to Plattner, who co-founded the company and had chaired the supervisory board since 2003, the group still sounded extremely confident.
Renjen is “extremely well qualified for the supervisory board and would be an excellent candidate,” it said in a statement.
“His deep understanding of the needs of our customers and the entire industry make him an ideal candidate to chair the Supervisory Board from 2024,” said Plattner at the time.
You can't get much more praise than that.
So now the about-face.
With the Finn Ala-Pietilä, who will be elected to the supervisory board and take over as chairman at the general meeting in May, an old acquaintance is coming back to the Walldorf-based company.
The former president of Nokia sat on the supervisory board of SAP from 2002 to 2021.
Doubts about the quality of the selection process
Markus Kienle, board member of the Investor Protection Association, called the personnel surprising in an interview with the German Press Agency.
Renjen was presented as a savior.
He is very surprised that there are now different opinions.
After all, the selection was actually preceded by a professional process.
The fact that such a failure is now occurring raises doubts about the quality and quality of the selection process, said Kienle.
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The latest developments are also surprising for the advocacy group of German-speaking SAP user companies, said DSAG CEO Jens Hungershausen on Monday.
The user group expected Renjen to bring his comprehensive consulting expertise to the supervisory board.
This has so far been very technologically influenced by Plattner.
Ala-Pietilä knows the Kozern well.
“From DSAG’s perspective, it remains exciting to see whether strategic changes will accompany his entry into office,” said Hungershausen.
“An important ally”
With Ala-Pietilä, who has already worked on various expert committees for artificial intelligence, SAP has found a leader “who not only brings a deep understanding of our industry and the complexity of European SE governance, but also an important ally in many crucial areas moments of SAP,” said Plattner on Sunday evening.
This time, however, SAP did not distribute quite as many advance praises as it did a year ago.
dpa