8 executive moves that will impact air cargo in 2019

Troubled year pushes out Panalpina’s Ulber
For the first half of 2019, one of the burning logistics questions surely will be, “who will replace Peter Ulber at Panalpina?”

After seeing Panalpina’s stock price plummet by 25 percent over a 12 month period, an “activist investor” in the Swiss logistics giant, Cevian Capital, which owns a 12.3 percent stake, had “run out of patience” with Peter Ulber (pictured), according to Reuters, and demanded that Panalpina remove Ulber from the chairmanship.

While Panalpina initially defended its chairman, Cevian’s sentiment eventually prevailed, and Panalpina said in October that Ulber would not stand for re-election at the next AGM, scheduled for May 9, 2019. The company’s Compensation and Nomination Committee is now conducting “a thorough and expeditious search process for a new independent chairman,” the company said.

Ulber joined Panalpina in 2013, when he was named president and CEO, and later became chairman in 2016. Before Panalpina, he fulfilled various management positions at rival forwarder Kuehne + Nagel from 1985 to 2011.

“This decision is in the best interest of Panalpina and all of its stakeholders,” Ulber said in a prepared statement. “The long-term goals of the company are best served by electing an independent chairman of the board at this time to further improve on a best-in-class governance. This process will strengthen the company on its strategic path forward.”

In addition, Panalpina appointed Christian Wurst, formerly at CEVA Logistics (see above), as its new chief executive for European operations, who will assume the new title next month. Panalpina CEO Stefan Karlen said Wurst will “help us reach our ambitious growth targets for 2020.”

Wurst began his logistics career in 1997 as a project manager at DB Schenker and later moved to its metals and mining unit in 2000. In 2006, he became CFO and deputy managing director of Schenker’s Russian operations.

Previously, Wurst held executive positions at Wincanton from 2007 to 2012, and the RWUTV Group in 2012, before joining CEVA in 2013.