Frans van Houten, who has led the transformation of Philips into a medical technology for the past 12 years, is to stand down in October and will be replaced by Roy Jakobs.

‘The supervisory board and current Philips CEO Frans van Houten have agreed that with the end of his third term in sight, the time is right for the change in leadership,’ the company said in a statement.

‘After a comprehensive evaluation of external and internal candidates, the supervisory board has unanimously decided to propose Roy Jakobs as the next president and CEO of Philips to its general meeting of shareholders.’

According to the Financieele Dagblad, Van Houten’s departure is 18 months earlier than expected. In May, 80% of shareholders voted against awarding a €1.8 million bonus to Van Houten because they were unhappy about delivery problems and issues with the company’s widely used sleep apnea machines.

Jakobs, who joined Philips in 2010, has held several positions within the company and is currently business leader of the company’s ‘connected care’ arm. In 2021, he was made responsible for the recall of Philips’ sleep apnea apparatus after a health scare – a process which has run into considerable problems and which has been widely criticised.

Van Houten will act as advisor to the company – supporting the transition – until April 30, 2023, the company said.