In a candid fireside chat with Barclays’ Warren Ackerman, Nestlé CFO Anna Manz opened on why and how the now-former CEO Laurent Freixe was investigated and dismissed over an undisclosed romantic relationship with a subordinate.
“Back in May, we received a speak-up through our internal channels alleging a romantic relationship with an employee and improper favouritism,” she told Ackerman during Barclays Global Consumer Staples Conference.
“And that was investigated through an internal investigation overseen by the board. No evidence was found at that point, and it was at that point that Laurent also made a personal statement stating that there had been no such thing.
“Subsequent to that, we had a number of other speak-ups making slightly different allegations and was slightly different information.
“And on the back of that, the board initiated a second, broader, external investigation, and it was that that triggered information that led to the board believing that there’s been a breach of conduct and that they needed to act to change CEO.”
Manz was also interrogated on why ex-Nespresso boss Philipp Navratil was swiftly appointed as CEO in the aftermath of the shocking dismissal of Freixe, without the company initiating a full hiring process.
“We’ve had lots of questions about succession at Nestlé,” she said. “Laurent is 63 now. And so of course, the Board have been focused on succession considerably anyway, and a lot of work has been going on in the background, looking at both internal and external candidates.
“Now, we didn’t expect to find ourselves here now. So the timing has come earlier.”
Anna Manz, CFO, Nestlé
“The reason you don’t see us do an external search now is because the Board felt that they’d done all of the work and were well-placed to appoint the best candidate that they have identified, which is Philipp. [...] It allows us to keep real momentum in the business.”
Manz described Navratil as ‘a really strategic, thoughtful leader’ who’s ‘very pragmatic and executionally focused’ and who had adapted quickly to his role as a CEO of Nespresso after helping to roll out Starbucks products across 90 countries.
“He’ll bring a freshness of perspective and a pace to change at Nestlé,” Manz added. “I think that’s one of the reasons that the board has made this appointment.”
Navratil is expected to address investors during the company’s Q3 update on October 16, 2025.
“We are looking at ways to introduce him to the investment community ahead of that,” Manz added.