Margherita Della Valle has been interim CEO of Vodafone Group since Nick Read stepped down in December 2022. Today, Vodafone Group announced that Della Valle has been named as permanent Chief Executive.“On behalf of the board, I am delighted to announce the appointment of Margherita as group chief executive, following a rigorous internal and external search,” stated Jean-François van Boxmeer, Vodafone Group chairman.Della Valle’s career at Vodafone has included marketing, operational, commercial and financial positions.In a statement today, Della Valle said, “To realize our potential, Vodafone needs to change. We know we can do better. My focus will be to improve the service for our customers, simplify our business and grow.”In addition to being appointed Group chief executive, Della Valle will also continue as Group chief financial officer until an external search for a new Group CFO is complete.New Street Research analyst James Ratzer said Della Valle has been an excellent CFO, and she has been incremental in driving a lot of the cost-cutting initiatives across Vodafone Group and with the integration of Unity. “She has been very hands-on with a lot of these processes, and if it weren’t for her efforts, Vodafone’s margins would likely be considerably lower than they are today,” wrote Ratzer.He also noted that this personnel move could be seen as a missed opportunity to drive broader change at the company, which “has recently begun to under-perform peers across the board.”Additional ContextVodafone’s European business, particularly in Germany, could have benefited from leadership with strong connections in Berlin and Brussels to advocate more effectively on regulatory and market issues, as suggested by Ratzer.
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