Vodafone is to appoint Jean-Francois Van Boxmeer as a Non-Executive Director following the Company’s Annual General Meeting, subject to the approval of shareholders.
The firm said it is the intention that he will succeed Gerard Kleisterlee as Chairman of the Board in November.
Kleisterlee, who has been Vodafone’s Chairman for nine years, will step down and retire from the Board on that date.
Van Boxmeer is currently CEO of Heineken N.V., the world’s second largest brewer. He has been Heineken’s Chief Exec since 2005 and will hand over the role to his successor in June 2020.
His work at Heineken is said to have resulted in a nearly threefold increase in the beer firm’s share price, and is credited with creating significant shareholder value.
He will join Heineken Holding as a Non-Executive Director in June 2020.
Nick Read, Chief Executive of Vodafone, said: “I am delighted that Jean-Francois will be joining Vodafone and becoming Gerard’s successor.
“He has presided over a highly successful period of transformation and value creation at Heineken, has extensive international experience in driving growth through both B2B and B2C business models, and is highly-regarded as one of the longest standing and most successful CEOs in Europe.”
Commenting on the appointment, Gerard Kleisterlee said: “Jean-Francois is a very experienced businessman, with an in-depth knowledge of our geographic regions and he brings very strong sales and customer focus.
“I am proud of what we have achieved during my nine years with Vodafone and of the team’s efforts to move us from a mobile-only operator to a leading position in converged communications and our clear focus on two scaled, differentiated platforms in Europe and Africa.”
Van Boxmeer added:” Vodafone has a unique role to play in enabling the digital society and the vital importance of technology and communications in our daily lives has been sharply brought into focus through recent events.
“I am greatly looking forward to working with Nick and the executive team to drive forward Vodafone’s strategy, ensuring that we create significant value for all stakeholders.”