Vodafone has recruited Jean-Francois van Boxmeer, the current CEO of brewer Heineken, to succeed Gerard Kleisterlee as chairman from November this year.
The British company said van Boxmeer, a Belgian, will join as a non-executive director on July 28.
He has been Heineken's CEO since 2005, presiding over a nearly threefold increase in its share price through a combination of strategic transactions and organic growth.
He will hand over the role to Asia-Pacific chief, Dolf van den Brink, in June.
'In-Depth Knowledge'
Van Boxmeer "is a very experienced businessman, with an in-depth knowledge of our geographic regions and he brings very strong sales and customer focus," said Kleisterlee, who has been Vodafone's chairman for nine years.
"I am greatly looking forward to working with (CEO) Nick (Read) and the executive team to drive forward Vodafone's strategy, ensuring that we create significant value for all stakeholders," van Boxmeer said.
Earlier this month Vodafone reported a 2.6% rise in full-year core earnings and maintained its dividend, bucking a corporate trend to cut or scrap payouts due to the coronavirus crisis.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
