PZ CUSSONS PLC
10 November 2011
Changes to the Board of Directors
Appointment of Non-executive Directors
PZ Cussons plc ("PZ Cussons" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment to the Board of two Non-executive Directors.
Helen Owers and Ngozi Edozien will each join the Board as Non-executive Directors on 1 January 2012.
Helen Owers is Chief Development Officer for Thomson Reuters Professional, with responsibility for the company's expansion in Rapidly Developing Economies. She has previously held a number of operational roles within the Thomson Reuters group and played an important role in the development of the company's digital strategy. Most recently as President of Global Businesses for Thomson Reuters Legal, she built new businesses in a number of emerging markets, balancing local consumer insights and needs with the globalisation of the business and key products. Before joining Thomson Reuters, Helen worked as a consultant with Gemini Consulting, developing and implementing corporate and operational strategies for a number of consumer products clients.
Ngozi Edozien is Chief Executive, West Africa at Actis, a leading private equity investor in emerging markets, where she is responsible for all aspects of the company's business in the region. Prior to joining Actis, Ngozi was VP Strategic Planning and Business Development for Pfizer Inc based in New York where she drove the financial and strategic planning processes of the company in addition to leading strategy projects and transactions for Pfizer. She was transferred to Nigeria in 2005 to run Pfizer's businesses in East, West and Central Africa, before being appointed in 2008 as Chief Executive of the Equity Vehicle for Health in Africa, an investment company focused on investing in private healthcare businesses in the continent. Ngozi has a background in strategic consulting, having spent seven years with McKinsey & Co, working principally in the consumer products and healthcare sectors. A US/Nigerian citizen, Ngozi was educated in the United States at Harvard University and started her career in corporate finance at JP Morgan.
Derek Lewis, who was appointed to the Board as a Non-executive Director in 2004 and has served as Senior Independent Director since 2008, will retire from the Board at the Company's next AGM in September 2012.
Richard Harvey, Chairman of PZ Cussons, said:
'We are delighted to welcome Helen and Ngozi to the Board. They each bring with them a wealth of relevant experience and insights which will be very valuable as we continue to grow the business. Their appointments will also serve to make the Board more representative of the Group's geographic profile and its customer base and reflect our belief in the benefits of diversity - in the Boardroom and across the whole of the Group."
"Although Derek will be remaining on the Board until next September, I would also like at this opportunity to thank him for his significant contribution to the Board and to the PZ Cussons Group since his appointment seven years ago, during which time PZ Cussons has delivered significant growth in shareholder value."
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Notes: Ngozi Edozien is a Non-executive Director of Diamond Bank Plc, a company listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. There is no other information in relation to either appointment which is required to be disclosed by paragraph 9.6.13 of the Listing Rules.
For further information please contact:
PZ Cussons Plc Tel: 0161 435 1000
Brandon Leigh, Group Finance Director
MHP Communications Tel: 020 3128 8100
John Olsen / James White