Schumacher ousted as Unilever’s CEO amid investors’ pressure
By Ralph Tathagata
In a shocking move that jolted both global investors and analysts, Unilever Plc has ditched Hein Schumacher as its global Chief Executive Officer (CEO). 53 years old Schumacher will step down as CEO on March 1 and leave the company on May 31.
“He is leaving by mutual agreement”, the company said, adding that “he will be treated as a “good leaver” and will continue to get his 1.85 million euros ($1.94 million) fixed pay until he leaves the business”.
The CEO’s abrupt departure after less than two years in the job saw Unilever’s shares take a nosedive as low as 3.4% on Tuesday, from the 9% that Schumacher built it since he assumed office on July 1, 2023.
Schumacher will be replaced by
Fernando Fernandez, the company’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
Fernandez, 58, has been with Unilever since 1988. Before he became CFO last year, he held a number of roles such as President Latin America and CEO Brazil and President of the Beauty & Wellbeing business.
Srinivas Phatak, currently Unilever’s deputy chief financial officer and group controller, will become acting CFO, while the company looks for a permanent replacement.
The tough management change, according to Unilever, was made after a board meeting on Monday, where the company concluded that Fernandez, who has been with Unilever for nearly 40 years, was the right person to execute the company’s strategy.
It would be recalled that, when Schumacher became CEO, analysts and investors had applauded Unilever’s decision to choose an external candidate as CEO. Expectedly, he reset the group’s strategy to address years of underperformance and laid out cost cuts last year, including plans to separate its ice cream division and cut thousands of jobs.
Speaking to Reuters, James Edwardes Jones RBC Capital analyst, said, “We are gobsmacked at the news that Unilever’s very highly regarded CEO Hein Schumacher is to step down after a very successful 18 months in charge.”
Ian Meakins, Unilever Chairman, said the board was impressed by Fernandez’s “decisive and results-oriented approach”, and had given him the task of executing the growth strategy.
“There is much further to go to deliver best-in-class results,” Meakins added.
It would also be recalled that, Mark Schneider, Nestle CEO, was ousted last year after several quarters of weak sales volume growth.
Unilever, which owns Hellmann’s mayonnaise, Dove soap and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, said there was no change to its 2025 outlook or medium-term forecast and that the board was committed to “further accelerating” Schumacher’s growth plan.
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