Heidelberg UK is looking for a new head of finance and IT following the post-Drupa departure of Chris Semprini.
The vacant post is to be filled from within Heidelberg, but it is unlikely to be someone from the UK. The decision to appointment a Heidelberg employee is notable given Semprinis background. He had previously been finance and company secretary with railway systems provider Adtranz, part of the Daimler Chrysler Group.
Semprini was appointed last July to replace Gerard Heanue, who now heads up the Far East finance operation, (PrintWeek, 9 July 1999). On taking up the position at Heidelberg, he thought that coming from the outside the industry was an advantage. "I wont have any preconceptions about the commercial aspects, about how we make the money or how we service our customers," he argued. "As such, I can be more questioning than those who have grown within the company."
The post is being temporarily filled for three months by chartered account Robert Smyth, who is acting as the companys interim chief financial officer and company secretary.
Smyth, who was appointed on 8 June, was previously finance director with Prism Rail.