VEVEY, Switzerland – The Nestlé Board of Directors has appointed Leanne Geale as Executive Vice President and General Counsel and as a member of the Executive Board of Nestlé S.A., effective August 1, 2019. In her role, Leanne Geale will oversee the company’s Legal and Compliance functions.
David Frick, Head of Governance, Compliance & Corporate Services, and Ricardo Cortes-Monroy, Chief Legal Officer, will report to Leanne Geale in her capacity as General Counsel. David Frick will leave the Nestlé Executive Board as of July 31, 2019 and will continue to serve in his present role, including as Secretary to the Board.
David has made significant contributions towards Nestlé’s reputation in corporate governance and put in place the company’s strong compliance management system.
Mark Schneider, Group CEO, said: “Leanne has extensive legal, compliance and corporate governance experience in industry-leading global companies. She is perfectly qualified to lead the newly combined Legal and Compliance group and to drive a coordinated strategy and greater synergies between these two important functions. Leanne can build on the solid foundations that our existing legal and compliance teams have established over the past years.”
Leanne Geale joins Nestlé from Royal Dutch Shell plc where she currently serves as Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer. She joined Shell in 2003 and has held various senior legal leadership roles. Prior to joining Shell, Leanne Geale served as Senior Counsel for the Royal Bank of Canada and as Counsel for Rio Algom Ltd and Alcan Aluminum Ltd.
