Reporter Li Zhe reports from Beijing.
On December 20, the Supervisory Board of BASF made changes to the company's management at a meeting. It was decided to appoint Dr. KellyMarkus Kamieth is appointed Chairman of the Executive Board of BASF with effect from the Annual General Meeting on April 25, 2024.
In addition, BASF recently announced that it has taken various measures to improve the management capabilities of its business units. Starting in January 2024, BASF will adopt new key performance indicators (KPIs). In the short to medium term, the company will place greater emphasis on EBITDA and cash flow before special items.
Personnel changes at the top
Brudermüller has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of BASF since 2018. During his tenure as Chairman of the Board of BASF, around 60 percent of BASF's expenditures were spent on capital expenditures and research and development. In addition, in the past five years, BASF has divested its business with €5 billion in sales and acquired a business with €4 billion in sales.
In 2012, he became the president of BASF's coatings business unit, and in 2017, he became a member of the executive board of BASF Group, covering Greater China, South Asia and East Asia, ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand, as well as large-scale projects in Asia.
In addition, the Supervisory Board of BASF has adjusted the division of responsibilities among the members of the BASF Executive BoardStephan Kothrade, as a member of the Executive Board, will also be responsible for the Group's Research Institute and succeeds Melanie Maas-Brunner as Chief Technology Officer, effective January 1, 2024. He will also be responsible for Greater China, South Asia & East Asia, ASEAN & Australia & New Zealand, and Asia Mega Projects, effective March 1, 2024.
In addition, it was announced at the supervisory board that Dr. Katja Scharpwinkel will take over as Head of Industrial Relations at BASF SE and will succeed Curtivan in Europe, effective February 1, 2024. Dr. Dirk Elvermann, as a member of the Executive Board and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Digital Officer, will also be responsible for BASF Ventures, effective January 1, 2024.
Drive differentiated management
In addition to the personnel changes, BASF also recently announced new developments in the implementation of its corporate strategy. According to BASF, a key element of the corporate strategy proposed in 2018 is to transform BASF into a customer-centric organization by empowering its business units to better meet customer needs. Since then, BASF has taken various measures to improve the management capabilities of its business units.
"The company is taking a solid step forward in realigning its management of its various businesses in order to continue to increase BASF's competitiveness," Elvermann said. We will manage each business unit in a more differentiated way, combining the advantages of differentiated management, integrated business and an integrated organizational structure. ”
BASF mentioned that through differentiated management, each business will further adapt its specific business model and processes, while adapting to the corresponding process structure, information technology system and management framework. For businesses that are less integrated with the integrated business, the company will provide them with more autonomy to better meet the needs of their customers' industries while maintaining their advantage as an integrated business. This approach will be applied to the company's Surface Technologies business area in the Battery Materials & Coatings business unit, as well as to Agricultural Solutions.
According to the financial report, BASF's sales in the third quarter of 2023 were 15.7 billion euros, a decrease of 6.2 billion euros compared to the same period last year, mainly due to a sharp decline, concentrated in the materials, chemicals and surface treatment technology business areasEBIT before special items was 57.5 billion euros, down 7.5 billion euros from the prior-year quarterAt 7.2 billion euros, earnings declined mainly due to a significant decline in EBIT before special items in the Chemicals, Nutrition & Care, Industrial Solutions & Materials segments.
As of September 30, 2023, BASF's total assets amounted to €82.6 billion, down €1.9 billion from the end of 2022Net debt amounted to EUR 18.9 billion, EUR 2.6 billion higher than at the end of 2022. The shareholders' equity ratio at the end of the third quarter of 2023 was 488%, slightly higher than at the end of 2022. "Overall, this shows that BASF has a strong balance sheet and a good credit rating, as well as strong financial strength," Elvermann said. ”
BASF mentioned that from January 2024, it will use new key performance indicators (KPIs) to guide the entire Group. In the short to medium term, the company will place greater emphasis on EBITDA and cash flow before special items. At the same time, the company will continue to use return on capital employed (ROCE) as a medium-term management key performance indicator and continue to focus on asset profitability.
Editor: Dong Shuguang Proofreader: Yan Jingning).