David, take a load of this:
dowjones.wsj.com
0727-000805.djml&d2hconverter=display-d2h
(you need to subscribe to Dow Jones to open it up ).
I highlighted the important points Re: ERICY:
- " looking for a non-Swede CEO overseas" and
- who would probably be based in London.
Key questions that need to be answered are:
Does Terrence Matthews
-live "overseas";
-is he " a non-Swede "
-and would he be interested "in a job near his hometown"
( Newbridge,Wales,UK).
Also, may I suggest that next time you send a Xmas card to Terry, address it to
St. James's Square, London,
all IMHO( and imagination gg )
TA
PS: What percent of ERICY shares will Terry get?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wall Street Journal, July 27, 1999
Sweden's Ericsson May Search Overseas For
Long-Term Chief Executive
By ROD STONE, STAFF REPORTER
STOCKHOLM -- Now that it has a medium-term management arrangement
in place, Swedish telecommunications group Telefon AB LM Ericsson may
wait a few years before appointing a long-term chief executive.
Company watchers expect Ericsson's (ERICY) new president, Kurt
Hellstroem, to take over the chief executive post next year from Lars
Ramqvist, but this will last for only two or three years. In a break with
tradition, Ericsson may look overseas for a longer-term CEO, who would
probably be based in London.
Last Friday, Ericsson Chairman Lars Ramqvist - who returned as CEO after
the ousting of Sven-Christer Nilsson on July 7 - said Hellstroem may take
over the CEO position if the company's profits start improving. Ramqvist said
he expects to remain CEO - a position he held from 1990 to March 1998 - for
at least six months.
"While Hellstroem has said he's going to stay for a long time, I'm not so sure,"
said one Ericsson watcher in Stockholm. "He's 55 years of age and I think
Ericsson will possibly be looking for another CEO in two or three years time."
Paul Hansson of Myrberg Brokerage in Stockholm said he sees Hellstroem's
appointment as president as a medium-term arrangement lasting perhaps
three years. He said Ericsson could look overseas for a candidate that may
take both president and CEO positions or, alternatively, just the CEO role with
Hellstroem remaining as president.
"Ericsson has stated it is looking for a longer-term solution. I imagine they are
actively looking for another candidate to be the long-term solution," said one
analyst with a major European bank. He said non-Swedes are likely to be
considered for the role.
So far the rumor mill has tipped Jan-Aake Kark, currently president and CEO
of Swedish state telecoms group Telia AB, as a possible long-term candidate.
Telia, though, has denied this.
Kark was mentioned because he was previously head of Ericsson Microwave
Systems and will move to deputy CEO once Telia's merger with Norway's
Telenor ASA goes through. The top job at Telia/Telenor will be taken by
Telenor's CEO, Tormod Hermansen.
Executive search professionals reckon a company of Ericsson's stature would
be able to attract high-flying candidates from outside Sweden.
"As we've seen recently at Hewlett Packard, it's not uncommon for
companies to go outside for chief executives," said a London-based
headhunter specializing in the telecoms sector.
"Ericsson would attract good people as it has a great brand name and there
are some candidates out there that could fill that role," he added.
Analysts said the candidate will definitely need experience in the telecom
industry but not necessarily exposure to new data-communications
technologies. "Ericsson will be looking for an international-type manager with
an international network of contacts," said one analyst.
Any eventual successor will, like Hellstroem, probably be based at Ericsson's
new executive office at St. James's Square in London, which opens in
September. Hellstroem will reside in London but continue to have an office in
the Swedish capital, an Ericsson spokeswoman said.
An international candidate based in London may be able to bypass Sweden's
high taxes, headhunters said.
Ericsson's most pressing employment issue is the replacement of Chief
Financial Officer Carl Wilhelm Ros, who left earlier this month. The
appointment is a key issue for Hellstroem, said the spokeswoman.
- By Rod Stone; 46 8 545 13094; rod.stone@dowjones.com
Copyright (c) 1999 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Frank,
You may have hit the nail on the head !! How about this story from
DLJ : dljdirect.com.
Notice the word 'MERGE'
Regards
D.Kan |
