Unilever has announced it intends to appoint Paul Polman, 52, as group chief executive.  He will succeed Patrick Cescau, who retires at the end of the year.

Mr Polman, who will be officially proposed for appointment to the board at extraordinary general meetings in the autumn, was executive vice president at Nestlé in charge of Zone Americas.
Michael Treschow, chairman of Unilever said, "We are very pleased to welcome Paul Polman. He is a great talent with significant international experience and an excellent track record. He has all the attributes necessary to build on Patrick’s achievements."

Patrick Cescau joined Unilever in 1973 and was elected to the board as finance director in 1999. He subsequently served as Foods Director and has led Unilever for the last four, initially as chairman and then as the company’s first group chief executive. Thanking Mr. Cescau, Treschow said, "We are greatly in his debt for the transformation he has brought about over the last four years. The performance of the business has improved markedly under his leadership."

Paul Polman joined Nestlé in 2006 as chief financial officer, becoming head of Zone Americas in February this year. Prior to that he had a 26 year career in Procter & Gamble, culminating as group president, Europe – a position he held from 2001 - 2005.

Mr. Polman will be succeeded at Nestlé by Luis Cantarell, who has been heading the company's Zone Europe.

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