In a dramatic corporate shake-up, Laurent Freixe, the high-profile Chief Executive of Nestlé UK & Ireland, has been ousted from his role. The surprise move comes as the global food and beverage titan announces the complete dissolution of its regional management boards worldwide.
Mr. Freixe, a veteran with over four decades at the Swiss conglomerate, was reportedly informed of the decision to eliminate his position with immediate effect. The restructuring is part of Nestlé's new strategic plan to streamline operations and remove layers of management between its global headquarters and local market teams.
The End of an Era for UK Leadership
The decision marks a significant shift in how Nestlé, the company behind household names like KitKat, Nescafé, and Shreddies, will be managed. The UK and Ireland branch, a major operation in its own right, will no longer have a dedicated CEO at its helm.
Instead, responsibility will be pushed down to country managers who will report directly to the global zone chiefs, effectively centralising power and cutting out the regional tier that Mr. Freixe represented.
A Stellar Career Abruptly Halted
Laurent Freixe's departure concludes a remarkable 38-year career within the Nestlé empire. Having joined the company in 1986, he ascended through the ranks, holding numerous senior positions across Europe and the Americas before taking the reins of the UK and Ireland business.
His firing is not linked to performance but is purely a structural casualty. The move has sent shockwaves through the UK business community, highlighting the relentless pressure on even the largest corporations to simplify their hierarchies and reduce costs.
While Nestlé has stated the restructuring is designed to make the company 'faster, and more agile', it underscores a worrying trend for senior leadership roles within major UK subsidiaries of international firms.
