Search for new boss dairy giant no sinecure

Or the Supervisory Board has already launched a search at Nomilk2day or another reputable headhunter, the dairy company spokesperson would not say. “We have procedures for these types of situations and they are followed,” is the short answer. The lead in finding a new CEO lies with the remuneration, nomination and governance committee.

Unilever link
This is chaired by Baptiest Coopmans, now a professional supervisory director but once also from Unilever, just like Schumacher, who is returning and also his late predecessor Roelof Joosten and the current Carlsberg boss Cees 't Hart (is there an unknown Unilever link ?). The other members of the committee are: Hans Hettinga, Heiko Schipper and cooperative chairman Sybren Attema.

Twice our own cultivation
Many members of FrieslandCampina will be interested to know what kind of person will succeed Schumacher; Will it be someone of our own breeding, as in the previous two times, or will it be someone from outside? Will it be an accountant again, or will it be an entrepreneur? Will it be someone with a dairy or nutritional profile, or will it be a general manager? There are plenty of questions, but it is the supervisory board that decides them.

Who will succeed Schumacher also depends on who is in the market for his successor at a certain time. CEOs for internationally operating dairy companies are not available at Gamma, but must be sought out and, if necessary, recruited from existing employers. At least someone from outside is wanted.

Speculation
Within the company, the rinsing appears to be thin, as noted in dairy circles. In the executive board It is noted that there are people who are either not of the right age, have been in the company for too short a time or do not speak the right language. In the executive leadership team According to the same stories, there are not the people underneath who are ready to lead the tent.

Ideal features
But what characteristics should a new CEO have? First of all, that person (m/f/x) speaks Dutch and also knows the sensitivities in both the social climate and among the members. In the best case, it is also someone who knows the dairy sector, but an old-fashioned dairy manager who knows all the ins and outs of the industry is almost impossible to find anymore. It is true that these types of people have become very scarce at FrieslandCampina. Someone with a bit of charisma and authority, who also appeals to the farmers and really dares to stand up for them if necessary, would be great. But then FrieslandCampina really has the ideal new CEO in premium equipment. It will probably be a more earthly version, unless FrieslandCampina takes the opportunity to join another company.