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Poland: Dutch beer-maker Heineken, owner of Żywiec Group, is creating a new management structure that will significantly change the way Poland's biggest brewer is run, Warsaw Business Journal communicated on April 18.

Last week, Heineken announced that it would be changing its operating structures after its chief executive retires later this year. Replacing the existing system of several integrated or single markets, the company will split its operations into five regions - Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific - each to be managed by regional presidents.

As a result of the re-shuffle, Grupa Żywiec, which claims 36.6 percent of the Polish market, will lose Nico Nusmeier, its president for the past four years. Nuismeier is leaving to become the president for the Central and Eastern Europe region.

"Żywiec Group is a strong organization that will certainly play a major role in the newly created region that I am going to look after. I also know that the group's potential will develop in the right direction," said Nuismeier in a statement sent to the WBJ.

The company plans to announce Nuismeier's successor within the next few weeks.

Heineken's CEO Thony Ruys will retire in September and will be replaced by board member Jean-Fran~ois van Boxmeer. Last year, Grupa Żywiec posted a 34 percent rise in profits to zł.277 million on a net turnover of zł.3.63 billion, while Heineken's profits dropped one-third to zł.2.13 billion.


20 April, 2005