Unilever has found its new CEO after a widespread global hunt. Hein Schumacher will be appointed Unilever CEO designate on 1 June 2023 and after a month’s hand-over process, will become CEO, Unilever, on 1 July, 2023. He will step into the shoes of Alan Jope, who is set to retire from the Company and resign from the Board on 1 July, 2023.
Interestingly, Schumacher spent four years with Unilever as finance manager, in the initial years of his career, in 1997, based out of Germany and the Netherlands.
In the year 200, he became corporate controller – Asia / Central America, Ahold. This stint lasted three years, after which Schumacher moved on to HJ Heinz. He joined as finance director, Netherlands and within two years, was elevated to VP & CFO, Continental Europe.
Two years later, he became VP and chief strategy officer, HJ Heinz Group. The next two years saw him working out of Pittsburgh, US. In 2009, he was appointed VP-finance, Europe, working out of London. His next promotion made him president – Greater China, based out of Shanghai. From 2013 to 2014, he was zone president – Asia Pacific.
After a successful decade-long stint with Heinz, Schumacher moved to Royal FrieslandCampina, as CFO, in 2014. Just over three years into this role, he was elevated to CEO, a post he has held for over five years.
According to Unilever’s remuneration policy, in his new assignment, Schumacher will earn an annual fixed pay of €1.85 million, along with annual bonus and performance share plan awards, as well as relocation support.
Looking forward to leading Unilever, Schumacher is “convinced by the strength of Unilever’s fundamentals and its clear growth potential”. His focus will be ”to deliver a step-up in business performance, as we serve the billions of people around the world who use its products every day.”
