Siemens CEO Klaus Kleinfeld, who pledged to restore the reputation of the company after it was tarnished by bribery scandals, will not renew his contract with the industrial conglomerate, an Associated Press report said.
The Associated Press report, quoting a company statement said Kleinfeld's decision came after the supervisory board had proposed postponing discussions about his contract extension.
'Kleinfeld informed the supervisory board at its meeting today that he is no longer available for a renewed contract effective October 1,' Siemens said in a statement.
The Associated Press report said some members of the supervisory board, which is the equivalent of a US board of directors, reportedly wanted to oust the 49-year-old, who has been with the company for 20 years and CEO since January 2005.
'In times like these, the company needs clarity about its leadership. I have therefore decided not to make myself available for an extension of my contract,' Kleinfeld was quoted by the report in a separate a statement.
Siemens said the board had no immediate replacement for Kleinfeld lined up, but he would stay in the job through the expiration of his contract on Sept. 30, the report further said.
The company has been rocked by investigations in Germany, Italy and Switzerland over whether money totaling hundreds of millions of euros was taken from corporate accounts and used to pay bribes to help land telecommunications deals, the report added.