Lucy Peng steps down as Lazada chief executive after less than a year as it elevates Pierre Poignant
Four months after promoting Pierre Poignant to the role of executive president, a role which raised questions, Alibaba-owned Lazada has tapped the Frenchman again to take over the role of chief executive officer from Lucy Peng.
Alibaba-owned Lazada has tapped the Frenchman again to take over the role of the chief executive officer from Lucy Peng.
At the time of Poignant’s promotion in September, which was said to have been to assist Peng, the latter had only been in the role for less than six months. Now, Peng, who is also the e-commerce platform's chairman, a role she will retain, has stepped down from the chief executive role after leading Lazada for only eight months.
Despite not announcing Poignant’s promotion in September, which Lazada only confirmed after The Drum reached out, Lazada claims these moves are part of succession planning within the company. It has also yet to confirm what responsibilities Poignant took on as executive president and why such a role was created or needed when there was already a chief executive officer at that time.
Poignant will now lead the company’s strategic development into new growth pillars, while continuing to manage Lazada’s operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, working closely with country chief executive officers and regional functional team leaders.
“Pierre is a well-respected Lazada co-founder, who has contributed tirelessly to the company for the past six years,” said Peng, who is one of Alibaba’s 18 founders.
“He and the team of other co-founders had the vision to build our logistics network from the ground up back in the days when no one in South East Asia believed in e-commerce – this valuable asset has now set us apart from the competition. Over the years, Pierre has consistently delivered beyond his call of duty and excelled in every role he has taken up.”