The matter of CEO succession grew in urgency following the departure of a series of senior executives at Europe’s top aerospace group.
Guillaume Faury of France, currently COO of Airbus’s core commercial aircraft business, will replace Tom Enders as CEO. German-born Enders will retire at the next shareholder meeting in April 2019, the European aerospace multinational said in a statement.
Airbus experienced a management shakeup beginning in December 2017, when it came under investigation on corruption allegations. The departure of several senior executives ensued, including that of Chief Operating Officer Fabrice Bregier, whom Faury replaced. The announcement that Enders would be stepping down as CEO also came at this time.
The changes reportedly generated uncertainty around the company’s leadership. This deepened in August, when Eric Schulz, who had come on board as EVP, Head of Sales, Marketing & Contracts for Commercial Aircraft in January, abruptly resigned. The board stepped up the CEO succession process, stressing the need to avoid appearing indecisive. The resignation of Schulz, who was hired from Rolls-Royce, added strength to calls for an internal successor to Enders.
As the new CEO of Airbus, the main rival to U.S. plane maker Boeing, Faury will need to grapple with industrial problems concerning some jet deliveries, while overseeing the company’s helicopter and defence units. Sources have said that he will not be replaced as COO, though “this did not exclude shoring up the operational management as two top industrial executives prepare to retire at the end of this year,” Reuters reports. Airbus merged its plane-making business with the parent group last year, but has kept its leadership separate.
Changes are also taking place at the board level, as Chairman Denis Ranque will step down when his term expires in 2020. Airbus said its board would begin the process of selecting a new chairman “in due course”, with a view to “maintaining international diversity” at the management and board levels. Airbus usually splits chairman and CEO jobs between French and German nationals.
