In business, as in politics, it is often times the heads fell as tongues loosen. Judge for yourself. On one side, here is Hillary Clinton, unveiling on September 20, in his book What Happened, the scenes of his defeat in the presidential elections, and pouring out his bile on Donald Trump. On the other, this is Abilio Diniz, a shareholder of Carrefour, who in an interview given to the newspaper economic brazilian Valor on 29 September, provides a trial at the vitriol of Georges Plassat, the former CEO of Carrefour, the party, in July, to give place to Alexandre Bompard. Written in Portuguese, the article is suddenly gone under the radar in France. However, there is no shortage of salt: in an interview with the river administrator, through its family holding company Peninsula, is home to 12% of Carrefour in Brazil and 8% in the aggregate, do not merely analyze the situation of the distributor in his native country. There dézingue especially bluntly Georges Plassat. This rant is it the reflection of a personal conflict latent between the two road of the distribution? Or simply the result of a grudge in the face of a Stock price at the lowest? Hard to say.
Abilio Diniz accused in any case Georges Plassat all the ills of the Crossroads. For him, no doubt about it: if the distributor is presently in difficulties – delay in the transition to digital, faced with the decline of the major French hypermarkets, tossed to and fro by the competition in France and Southern Europe, and even forced to make a disclaimer on the result at the end of August-, the wrongdoer is none other than the CEO out. Appointed in 2012 to right the ship that went adrift after years Lars Olofsson, Georges Plassat has managed to double the share price from 13 to 26 euros, even managing to reach a peak of 32 euros. This bond has made him “a star”, “almost a myth”, according to Abilio Diniz, who critical, however: “According to me, he used a bad method to seek redress. It has sold assets to invest in the price. It must not just invest in the price. It should be a lot more solid.” Especially, the billionaire brazilian deplores the fact that, after the necessary phase of restructuring, Georges Plassat has been unable to engage the second step: reforming the group, faced with competition from the pure-players like Amazon and Google. “For [the group] is changed, it is necessary that the person likes it and Plassat didn’t want to,” says the man who will soon celebrate his 81 years.
“Someone who could lead the transformation”
Has the question of the role of Noël Prioux, director France of Carrefour until his appointment to the head of Brazil on 2 October, in the bad results of Carrefour in france, again, Abilio Diniz load the boat of Georges Plassat. The difficulties Carrefour in France? “It’s important to assign Plassat,” explains Diniz, denouncing the inability of the leader to delegate. “Nothing is done that Plassat does not wish to see it done,” says the Brazilian. “I realized that Plassat was blocking Prioux, he had no leeway to do the things he needed to do.”
Is it because he embodies the exact opposite of Georges Plassat, in terms of age, educational background, and the same character? Alexandre Bompard, his successor, seems in any case, to him, to find grace in the eyes of Abilio Diniz. “We went to look for someone who could actually lead the transformation”, praised the octogenarian. “Bompard is in the process of beginning the transformation which the company needs. (…) Bompard is determined to ensure that we remain in our comfort zone.” And in the face of the new executive committee unveiled by Bompard on 22 September, there still Diniz applauds: “He believes in something I also believe: the right people in the right place to make things happen.” Georges Plassat will enjoy the hidden message. As far as the new CEO of Carrefour, if it can be pleased to be in the small papers of its shareholder, it will have no doubt realised it would be better to straighten the course of Exchange of the distributor… fault to be accused of all evils.
