After 15 years of leading global brewer Heineken N.V., CEO and chairman of the executive board Jean-François van Boxmeer will vacate the top role on June 1, the Supervisory Board of Heineken N.V. announced in a press release today.
The board has also zeroed in on van Boxmeer’s successor: Dolf van den Brink, a 22-year veteran of the Dutch beer company who currently serves as president of Heineken’s Asia Pacific region. The board will nominate van den Brink for a 4-year term during its annual general meeting of shareholders on April 23.
Additionally, Heineken Holding N.V., which owns 50.005% of Heineken N.V., will nominate van Boxmeer to become a non-executive board director upon his exit from the company.
“Under his stewardship, the company more than doubled in size due to both strong organic growth and transformational deals that turned Heineken into the most global brewer, with iconic brands enjoyed by consumers on all continents,” Jean-Marc Huët, chairman of the supervisory board, said in a press release. “Not only did he deliver superior top-line growth and an excellent business performance, he also developed and nurtured a diverse and great talent pool across the world. He will leave behind a company excellently positioned to grow further.”
News of the succession plan comes one day before Heineken N.V. reports its full-year 2019 earnings on Wednesday.
Van Boxmeer, who joined the company in 1984, was first appointed chairman of the executive board and CEO in 2005.
For his part, van Boxmeer called now “the right moment to hand over leadership to the next generation.”
“It is my absolute pleasure to be handing the helm to Dolf,” he said in the release. “His ability to lead teams, grow our brands and business, in a responsible way, is nothing short of impressive. I am certain that under his leadership the company is in the best of hands to continue to grow.”
As for van den Brink, Huët said he was selected as the nominee to replace van Boxmeer after “a thorough succession process.”
“He has proven to be an outstanding leader and member of the executive team, winning in our markets, building great teams and growing our brands,” Huët added. “Coupled with his leadership experience in all four continents, Dolf van den Brink is the right CEO for the company in the next phase of growth and development, building on Jean-François van Boxmeer’s great legacy.”
Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken added that the Heineken family supports the nomination of van den Brink, who served as managing director of Heineken’s U.S. operations from 2009 to 2015 before becoming managing director of the company’s operations in Mexico.
“My family and I are confident that his strong leadership and people skills, combined with his broad international experience, make him the ideal candidate to succeed Jean-François in the CEO role,” she said.
A replacement for van den Brink in the Asia Pacific region has not yet been named.