Bilfinger CEO Tom Blades leaves

  • Push-out Score determined
  • After about four and a half years in the position
  • Praise, thanks and good wishes for Blades
  • Christina Johansson taking over in the interim
  • Search for a successor
  • Blades said 94 words

(exechange) — Mannheim, Germany, January 19, 2021 — Tom Blades, chief executive of Bilfinger, leaves — “in consent with the Supervisory Board.” As announced by Bilfinger SE in a news release and in a regulatory filing published on Tuesday, January 19, 2021, Thomas (Tom) Blades leaves his post as chief executive officer of the provider of industrial services to customers in the process industry after about four and a half years in the role, effective immediately.

Bilfinger will undertake a search for a successor.

Tom Blades’s duties as CEO will be taken over in the interim by Christina Johansson, currently Chief Financial Officer of Bilfinger SE, as Interim Chief Executive Officer.

“Personal reasons”

Tom Blades’s departure from the CEO post is explained as follows. Bilfinger said: “The Supervisory Board of Bilfinger SE and CEO Tom Blades (64) today mutually have agreed to comply with Tom Blades’ request today not to extend his contract beyond June 30, 2021 for personal reasons and against the background of his reaching the age of 65. In consent with the Supervisory Board, Tom Blades has declared his resignation from his mandate as a member of the Executive Board and CEO with immediate effect and withdraws from daily business.”

Precise information regarding Tom Blades’s future plans was not immediately available.

Share price decline since January 2018

The announcement follows a decline in Bilfinger SE’s share price of 26% since January 2018.

Chaired by Eckhard Cordes

Eckhard Cordes serves as Bilfinger SE’s Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

He serves as partner with Cevian Capital.

In the position of CEO since 2016

Tom Blades became CEO of the Company in 2016.

In order to ensure a smooth transition, Tom Blades has agreed to be available to provide further support to the Company.

Blades has many years of management experience in industrial companies and has been on the Executive Board at Linde since 2012. He was responsible, among other things, for the Americas business and had responsibility for the safety, reliability and efficiency of industrial plants throughout the world.

Prior to his time at Linde, he held appointments, among others, at Siemens as CEO of the Oil & Gas Division and served in management positions at international oil field service providers Halliburton and Schlumberger.

Blades is a British citizen and was born in Hamburg in 1956.

He completed his degree in Electrical Engineering in the United Kingdom and France.

Push-out Score determined

The Push-out Score™ determined by exechange gauges the pressure surrounding Tom Blades’s move on a scale of 0 to 10.

exechange reached out to Bilfinger and offered the company the opportunity to comment on the score.

Read the full story in the exechange report 4.2021 ($).