Emmanuel Faber was recently relieved of his position as CEO and Chairman of Danone, a multinational food company based in France. Faber attributes his ouster to the policies of investor groups Artisan Partners and Bluebell Capital that were dissatisfied with short-term returns.
From evidence emerging from inquiries it is likely that the Board of Danone was dysfunctional with considerable conflict as to future strategy, placing Faber in a difficult position. In testimony before the Economic Affairs Committee of the National Assembly of France, Faber called for restructuring of company boards and called for legislation and regulations to allow boards to resist pressure imposed by "disgruntled investors including activist shareholders".