SABMiller announces today a number of senior management and organisational changes that will become effective over the coming months:
- Norman Adami will stand down as Chairman of SABMiller Beverages South Africa with effect from 1 July 2014, and will be retiring from the group with effect from 31 July 2014.
- With effect from 1 July 2014, SABMiller’s South African and African regions will be consolidated into one region for management purposes, and Mark Bowman, currently Managing Director of SABMiller Africa, will become Managing Director of the enlarged SABMiller Africa region.
- Mauricio Leyva, currently the Managing Director of Beer South Africa, will become Chairman and Managing Director of SAB Ltd. in South Africa, reporting to Mark Bowman.
- John Ustas, the Managing Director of Amalgamated Beverage Industries, the Group’s South African soft drinks business, will also report to Mark Bowman.
- Mowabisi Fandeso, currently Projects Director at SA Beverages, will become Chairman of Appletiser reporting to Mark Bowman, with Francois Rozon, MD of Appletiser, reporting to Monwabisi.
Norman Adami has served the Group since 1979 and has been a member of the SABMiller Executive Committee for over 20 years. Beginning in 1994, he successfully led SAB Ltd as Managing Director for 9 years. In 2003, he moved to the newly acquired Miller Brewing Company as President and CEO, rebuilding that business, leading its turnaround, and creating a sustainable platform to enable Miller to compete in the US marketplace. From 2006 to 2007, Norman served as President of SABMiller Americas, which included Miller in the US and the group’s businesses in Latin America. Norman returned to SAB Ltd in 2008, where he continued the successful rebuilding and reinvigoration of the South African business in the face of substantial challenges. In January 2013, he was promoted to the new role of Chairman, SABMiller Beverages South Africa with effect from 7 January 2013, assuming overall strategic responsibility for SABMiller's beverage businesses in South Africa.
Commenting on Norman’s retirement, Alan Clark, Chief Executive, said:
“Norman has made an enduring contribution to the SABMiller group over many years and in many roles, and his passion, commitment, and deep business insights will be sorely missed. He has been a stalwart of our business for 35 years, and on behalf of all of my colleagues and our shareholders, I would like to thank Norman for his support, friendship and inspirational leadership, both in South Africa and as a member of the SABMiller’s executive leadership team, and to wish him and his family every happiness on his retirement.”
Norman Adami said his retirement was in line with the decision last year to assume the role of Executive Chairman, ensuring a smooth transition as Mauricio Leyva took the reins as beer MD.
“For the past 35 years, I have considered it a unique privilege to be part of the SABMiller team, and am truly grateful to have worked alongside such passionate, dedicated people. I am especially proud of everything that has been accomplished in the past five years.
“SAB’s future is bright and the leaders of SAB, ABI and Appletiser are in a great position to lead their teams forward. I have every confidence these strong leaders will continue to build on our proud heritage as one of South Africa’s most admired and respected companies, ” said Adami.
Commenting on the management changes, Alan Clark added:
“I am very pleased to be able to appoint Mark to head our new Africa division. As we look to capitalise on our global scale and presence, we see significant advantages in managing all of our African businesses as one region. We believe there is strong potential for profitable growth in both beer and total beverages in Africa, and, by harnessing the skills of our South African and African business in a combined Africa region, we believe that we will be better placed to access growth prospects across the entire continent.
“Mark has been instrumental in developing SABMiller's beer and soft drinks operations on the African continent over the past six years, with volumes growing from 25 million hectolitres in 2009 to 37 million hectolitres in 2013, and EBITA from US$ 562 million to US$ 838 million over the same period, and I believe he is the right person to lead the combined business, and to deliver the scale benefits and drive growth across our markets and brand portfolios in the region.
“Mauricio Leyva has done an excellent job in South Africa since his appointment last year, in very challenging economic conditions. His skills, leadership and track record make him a great choice to lead our South African business and I am confident that it will continue to thrive under his leadership.”
Mark Bowman was appointed Managing Director of SABMiller Africa in 2007. He has significant experience of both the beer and soft drinks businesses, having joined SABMiller's beer division in 1993, and has held various senior positions in the group, including Managing Director of SABMiller's Polish subsidiary Kompania Piwowarska S.A., Managing Director of Amalgamated Beverage Industries Ltd (now the soft drinks division of SAB Ltd) and Chairman of Appletiser. He is an independent non-executive director of Tiger Brands Limited (listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange).
Mauricio Leyva was appointed as Managing Director of SAB Ltd.’s beer division in South Africa in January 2013, having previously been the President of SABMiller’s business in Peru, Union de Cervecerias Peruanas Backus y Johnston S.A.A. (Backus) since October 2011. He has been with the SABMiller group since the merger with Grupo Empresarial Bavaria in 2005. He was Vice President of Marketing and Sales for Bavaria SA in Colombia before being appointed in March 2009 as President of Cerveceria Hondurena S.A., the group’s beer and soft drinks business in Honduras.
