Soitec CEO Succession Causing Serious Dissension

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What appeared to be a classic CEO succession plan at Soitec is garnering strong reactions.

www.eetasia.com, Jan. 26, 2022 – 

Planning who will be the next CEO of a publicly listed company is one of the most fundamental responsibilities of the board of directors. Such a decision may, however, be subject to dissension, and this is the case for the replacement of Paul Boudre at the head of Soitec.

Contacted by EE Times Europe, the company's spokesman said he "can't answer" and referred to the two press releases issued on Jan. 19 and Jan 21.

On Jan. 19, 2022, Soitec's board of directors announced it had appointed Pierre Barnabé, currently Atos senior executive vice-president, group security officer and global head of big data and cyber security, as the new CEO, succeeding Paul Boudre in July 2022.

What appeared to be a classic CEO succession plan is garnering strong reactions.

Immediately after this announcement, Soitec's executive committee sent a letter to the board of directors and strategic investors questioning the appointment process of the new CEO.

The executive committee, whose members remained undisclosed in the letter, wrote, "It is incomprehensible for the executive committee of Soitec that the succession plan, implemented by the chairman of the board of directors, was organized in such haste and in total opacity, without involving the CEO in the recruitment process and without consultation with the members of the executive committee, without serious consideration of internal candidates, who have been identified and prepared since 2018, thus going against all the rules of good governance."

In the Jan. 21 press release, Soitec seeks to put an end to speculations and indirectly reassure the markets. The group indeed plunged 18.2% to the bottom of the index after the news broke. The press release states: "The announcement of Soitec's leadership succession plan, on Jan. 19, is the result of a rigorous decision-making process based on a detailed assessment of the company's needs for its next phase of development. The process, which began in March 2021, was conducted in complete conformity with best-practice governance standards and with the full support of Soitec's main shareholders."

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