The supervisory board of DaimlerChrysler AG would like to extend the contract of chief executive Juergen Schrempp when it expires in 2005, supervisory board and company sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
“There is a sentiment among members of the supervisory board in favour of extending Schrempp’s contract,” one source told Reuters.
The news agency said Schrempp, who will be 60 when his contract expires in April 2005, oversaw the merger of Germany’s Daimler-Benz with US car maker Chrysler in 1998, since when its share price has crumbled, Chrysler has lurched through serial restructuring drives and the firm has struggled to demonstrate synergies.
The source told Reuters the supervisory board would only be able to extend his contract for one year because of his age.
“It is up to the supervisory board to decide on Mr. Schrempp’s future. We as a company cannot comment on this,” a DaimlerChrysler spokesman told the news agency.
Reuters noted that The Wall Street Journal Europe quoted Hilmar Kopper, the head of the board, which oversees management, as saying members of the supervisory board had informally floated the idea.
“I feel more pressure by supervisory board members to influence Juergen to stay longer, rather than the other way round,” Kopper reportedly told the paper, adding that members of the board had raised the topic over a glass of wine.
According to Reuters, the paper quoted Schrempp as saying he would have to think about staying on if asked to do so by the board.
