Unilever solidifies leadership as it makes acting CFO permanent
Unilever has appointed Srinivas Phatak as CFO, following his interim tenure in the role after Fernando Fernandez transitioned to Chief Executive Officer earlier this year.
The appointment comes after Srinivas, then Deputy Chief Financial Officer and Group Controller, assumed the role of acting CFO while a search was conducted to identify a permanent candidate.
After a thorough internal and external search process, the company has unanimously appointed Srinivas as CFO, based on his relevant experience, as well as his performance during his time as acting CFO.
It comes after former CFO Fernando Fernandez replaced Hein Schumacher as CEO in February 2025.
Speaking about the permanent appointment, Fernandez said: "Srinivas has been a great partner over the last six months as acting CFO and over many years as part of the Unilever leadership team.
"He brings financial rigour, strategic clarity, and a sharp eye for value creation. His leadership and constructive challenge will be very valuable in driving consistent volume growth, margin expansion, and advancing our growth story.
"I'm confident that, together with the team, we can build a scalable marketing and sales engine that delivers executional excellence across all channels."
