Stiga SpA Board of Directors has announced the appointment of Sean Robinson as new CEO of Stiga Group. Georg Metz stands down as Stiga CEO having decided after 10 years leading the company and being more than 40 years in the industry, that he wishes to devote more time to his family and to other commercial and private tasks.
In addition, Sean will be appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Stiga SpA and Executive Director of Stiga C and Stiga S.A. boards.
Says Mr Laurence Raven, Chairman of the Board of the Stiga Group:
“For 10 years Georg has been an outstanding leader of our business. On behalf of everyone at Stiga, I would like to place on record my profound gratitude for everything that Georg has done for the company during his tenure as CEO. His vision, drive and deep personal commitment to Stiga has delivered a transformation in the company’s fortunes. He leaves a company that is more agile and resilient, and in an excellent position to succeed in an increasingly fast-changing and dynamic industry. Georg has every reason to be proud of what he has accomplished and we wish him every happiness and success for the future.”
He continues: “I am absolutely delighted that Sean has agreed to become the new CEO of the Group. Sean brings a wealth of experience to the role, having held leadership positions in businesses operating across a variety of industries in many countries all over the world. Since he joined Stiga in January of this year he has developed a deep understanding of our business and the industry. In recent months he has also made a significant contribution to the development of Stiga’s long term business strategy as the company embraces the evolutionary change taking place in the markets in which we operate. The Board looks forward to working with Sean as we progress towards the delivery of this strategy and is highly confident that under his leadership, Stiga will prosper long into the future.”
Sean is native English, but from his professional life is a truly cosmopolitan, senior executive manager who has held many important roles in a variety of high-level managerial positions within leading international companies. After an initial experience at BAE Systems (a major UK firm, and leader in modern technologies applied to defence and space systems), and another at Case (a leader in construction equipment), he moved to Bosch where he held a Director position between 1998 and 2002. Then he joined Dyson, one of the fastest developing companies in the home appliance business, where he started as Manufacturing Director for UK and Malaysia and was eventually appointed Managing Director in 2007. In 2010 he joined HYVA, a major international player in transportation/trucking/railroad solutions, as Chief Operating Officer based in Hong Kong, being in charge of group strategy, operations, supply chain, service, product development, and quality and brand management.
Finally, in 2015 he joined Fischer & Paykel Appliances, an international player in modern home appliances and part of the global Haier Group, where he was based in the New Zealand HQ. There he was the CEO of the Technology Group, responsible for driving the growth and development of the business with brilliant success in Asia, Europe and North America.