Emmanuel Babeau to Guide PMI Shift

Philip Morris International has appointed Emmanuel Babeau as its chief financial officer, replacing Martin King. King will be taking on a new role as CEO, PMI America, a newly created function. Reporting to global CEO Andre Calantzopoulos, King will coordinate both international services based in the U.S. and all U.S. representation, including PMI’s relationship with Altria, which is commercializing IQOS in the American market.

Babeau will join PMI on May 1, 2020, from Schneider Electric, where he served most recently as deputy CEO in charge of finance and legal affairs. A native of France and graduate of ESCP Business School, he has spent nearly three decades leading fundamental change across industries.

“PMI is undergoing a period of intensive change as we transition away from cigarettes to our science-based smoke-free products—products that are much better alternatives than continued cigarette smoking,” said Calantzopoulos. “We are thrilled that Emmanuel will be joining us to further accelerate the PMI transformation towards a smoke-free future. He has an enviable track record of challenging the status quo and growing businesses under the most complex circumstances.”

During his 10 years at Schneider Electric, Babeau helped to grow the company from €18 billion market cap to approximately €60 billion ($66.73 billion), while transforming the business model from hardware products for electrical distribution into digital technologies driving the energy transition and industry 4.0. In 2019, Harvard Business Review cited Schneider Electric as one of the top 15 business transformations of the past decade. The company now has €27 billion in revenues and is a leader in digital solutions for efficiency and sustainability.

“PMI is precisely the challenge I was looking for: a global leader in its industry with a commitment to fundamental change—and one that is prompted not only by business strategy but also by a desire to operate more sustainably and in the interest of public health,” said Babeau. “I am excited about working with André Calantzopoulos, Jacek Olczak and the rest of the leadership team to achieve PMI’s business objectives.”