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Punit Renjen in May 2023
Photo: KAI PFAFFENBACH / REUTERS
Europe's largest software manufacturer, SAP, and its designated supervisory board chairman Punit Renjen are surprisingly going their separate ways. The American, who is intended to be the successor to co-founder Hasso Plattner, will resign his mandate on the control committee at the general meeting in May, the DAX heavyweight announced on Sunday evening in Walldorf. The reason is the different ideas about the role of the future chairman of the supervisory board.
SAP presented former Nokia manager Pekka Ala-Pietilä as a replacement for Renjen. The Finn is to be proposed for election to the supervisory board and is also slated to serve as chairman of the board.
Almost a year ago, SAP introduced Renjen as Plattner's successor after a long search. In May of last year, Renjen had already moved into the control board. As the former head of the management consultancy Deloitte, he should above all bring the customer's perspective on the group in order to provide impulses. However, SAP has now scrapped the plans. According to reports, the American could not get used to the role of supervisor of the company's board of directors, which is legally required in Germany.
With Ala-Pietilä, 67, an old acquaintance is now returning, who sat on the Walldorfer supervisory board from 2002 to 2021. He was President of Nokia from 1999 to 2005 and has worked on various expert committees for artificial intelligence.
kfr/dpa/Reuters