Translation: Original comment published in Finnish on 3/5/2024 at 10:39 am EET.

Kempower announced changes in the Group Leadership Team. The most significant of these changes was the departure of Tim Joyce, Head of North America. We see this change as a potentially negative signal for the development of the North American businesses, although there is no certainty about the background to the departure.

Joyce’s departure the most significant change in the Leadership Team

At 9.30 am EET today, Kempower announced changes to the Group Leadership Team. There have been a number of changes, some quite small in the grand scheme of things, such as transfers between the Leadership Team and the Extended Leadership Team. The most significant change, in our view, was the departure from Kempower of Tim Joyce, the company's Head of North America. Kempower will immediately launch a recruitment process to find Joyce's successor.

Departure may signal challenges for North American growth work

Before joining Kempower, Joyce already had more than 20 years' experience in management positions in various companies Joyce was announced as Kempower's Head of North America in July 2023 and was only in the role for around 7 months. The reason for the departure is not known, but the announcement of broader changes in connection with Joyce's departure could, in our view, indicate that the change was initiated by Kempower. The rapid departure raises doubts as to whether the change could be due, for example, to challenges in implementing the growth strategy, but on the other hand, such a single change in personnel could also be due to other reasons. Speculating on the causes and consequences of this change is uncertain. North American growth was being driven long before Joyce joined Kempower, so we believe that the transition period associated with the leadership change will not be a major impediment to driving growth.