Food Lion owner Ahold Delhaize poaches new CFO from construction company

Dive Brief:

Netherlands-based Ahold Delhaize, owner of grocery brands Stop & Shop, Food Lion and Fresh Direct has announced Jolanda Poots Bijl as its CFO nominee and member of the management board, the company announced Monday.
Pending shareholder approval, Poots-Bijl will succeed Natalie Knight, who recently took another CFO position at automaker Stellantis, which produces Jeep, Maserati and Chrysler brands among others.
Prior to taking the financial helm of the global grocery giant, Poots-Bijl served as CFO for construction company Van Oord since 2016, according to the company statement.

Dive Insight:

Poots-Bijl is set to join the company mid-August as executive vice president of finance and will officially take on CFO duties on Oct. 1 after an “induction period,” according to the company statement. Knight, Poots Bijl’s successor, will stay with the company until July to support the transition.

“She is a seasoned CFO with broad international working experience and a passion for digital transformation and sustainability. She has relevant experience in a wide range of sectors and brings finance leadership that can help us deliver our Leading Together strategy,” said Frans Muller, CEO of Ahold Delhaize, in the statement.

In 2018, the company announced Leading Together as a growth strategy focusing on doubling net consumer online sales to around 7 billion euros as well as repositioning Stop & Shop, its largest brand, among other goals. Earlier this year, the company noted its reinforced commitment to the strategy.

Also on Monday, Magnachip, a Korean designer and manufacturer of semiconductor platform solutions, announced a CFO transition as well, with current CFO Shin Young Park taking maternity leave, the company announced. In the interim, the company’s current CEO Young-Joon Kim will be taking over CFO duties in addition to his role as top executive.

In recent months, many companies have ceded the finance chief reins off to interim executives. These leaders have provided peace of mind to shareholders as many businesses navigate murky waters, especially given headwinds from the current macro environment.