Glatfelter Corporation, a leading global supplier of engineered materials, announced that Thomas Fahnemann has been appointed to the role of president and chief executive officer, effective immediately. He replaces the company’s current chairman and chief executive officer, Dante C. Parrini, who will be leaving the company following a 25-year career. In addition, the Board has appointed Kevin M. Fogarty, currently an independent Glatfelter Board Director and Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, to the role of non-executive chairman. The company noted that these changes are not related to Glatfelter’s operations, financial reporting or controls, or personal conduct.

“The Board of Directors of Glatfelter are unanimous in our view that we have the right combination of business segments serving attractive, growth-oriented markets and customers, with sustainable product offerings to truly address fundamental challenges in today’s changing world. Nevertheless, as our shareholders and all stakeholders well know, unprecedented global inflationary challenges, and the geopolitical conflicts in Russia/Ukraine primarily, have yielded major challenges impacting Glatfelter’s financial performance. As such, the Board is also unanimous in its view that now is the right time for new leadership at Glatfelter to address these concerns specifically, while charting a new direction to unlock the full value we fundamentally believe is unique to Glatfelter. In naming Thomas Fahnemann as our next CEO, we are confident his success leading similar consumer-driven, industrial businesses, coupled with his vast European experiences and perspectives, will present our shareholders, customers, and employees alike with a disciplined approach to reposition the company toward a future we all believe is achievable. We are delighted to welcome Thomas to Glatfelter,” says Lee C. Stewart, independent lead director.

Fahnemann currently serves as non-executive director, member of the board and chairman of the Audit Committee for AustroCel Hallein, GmbH, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. From 2010 to 2017, Fahnemann served as CEO and chairman of the Management Board, Semperit Holding AG in Vienna, Austria, where he developed the company’s growth strategy which was instrumental in growing sales and volume while improving the profitability in the industrial sector. He also led the largest acquisition in the history of Semperit Holding. Prior to 2010, he held leadership roles in various fiber- and chemical-based businesses including serving as CEO and chairman of the Management Board, RHI AG; CEO and chairman of the Management Board, Lenzing AG; and vice president, general manager, KoSa (Koch Industries). Fahnemann holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Mainz University of Applied Science in Germany and is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Executive Management Program. Fahnemann will be based at Glatfelter’s corporate headquarters in Charlotte, NC.

“I am honored to join Glatfelter, a company with a long, distinguished history of servicing its customers with high quality, market-leading products. I want to thank the Board of Directors for their confidence in me to lead the company at this critical time. I am very much looking forward to working with the Glatfelter team to deliver the performance and results our stakeholders expect,” says Fahnemann.

Stewart concludes, “We are grateful to Dante for his 25 years of service with Glatfelter, including his leadership as chairman and chief executive officer since 2011. Dante was instrumental in Glatfelter’s transformation from a traditional paper manufacturer to a more specialized engineered materials company that is now a leading supplier of essential products for enhancing consumers’ everyday life. Dante’s leadership and personal commitment to Glatfelter’s Core Values and Code of Business Conduct, and his dedication to Glatfelter people, were exemplified in the way he conducted business throughout his entire career and will provide the cornerstone to his legacy for many years to come.”

In addition, Kevin M. Fogarty will serve in a newly created role as non-executive chairman to Glatfelter’s Board of Directors. The position of independent lead director, currently held by Stewart, will no longer exist, however, Stewart will continue to play an instrumental role on the company’s Board, including assuming the role of chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Fogarty joined the Board in 2012 and recently retired from Kraton Corporation, Inc., where he served as president, chief executive officer and director since 2008. He is also the chairman of the Board of Ecovyst, a board director for OPAL Fuels and Circulus Holdings, PBLLC, and previously served on the Board of Directors of the American Chemistry Council from 2017 through 2022.