However, Mr Schindler will remain in his role as chairman of the Board of Directors and of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors, which is responsible for the supervision of the company.

Mr Schindler announced the decision at the company's annual results press conference in Lucerne, Switzerland, on February 17, 2011. He said that, following the sale of Schindler's majority stake in the ALSO Group, Schindler Holding Ltd. is now a "pure-player" and all other spin-offs have been completed. As a consequence it makes no sense to have a one-over-one management structure.