Icelandic Group on Thursday announced that Magnús Bjarnason will step down as CEO while Árni Geir Pálsson, a director of the board, will become the group’s new CEO.
Bjarnason has been in charge of the company for the past two years and successfully led the merger of its UK operations into a single company. Pálsson, who worked for Icelandic from 2000 to 2005, has served on the company’s board of directors since 2011.
Pálsson, a University of Iceland graduate with an M.Sc. degree in international business from Copenhagen Business School, has extensive experience of business operations and has served on the boards of directors of various companies both in Iceland and abroad. He has worked in recent years as an independent business consultant. In 2006-2008 he was CEO of Median, a software company specializing in payment transaction services, and in 2005-2006 he was CEO of the entertainment company Lazytown. In 2000-2005 he served as head of business development at Icelandic Group (SH) and before that as head of development of the publishing company Frjáls Fjölmiðlun, owner of the advertising company Máttúrinn og dýrðin, public relations manager at Samskip and securities broker at VÍB.
“Icelandic Group has faced various challenging circumstances and changes in recent years, most recently the mergers of the company's businesses in the United Kingdom under the leadership of Magnús Bjarnason,” said Herdís Fjeldsted, chairman of the board of directors. “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Magnús for his work in the interests of the company with my best wishes for his future. I am happy to welcome Árni Geir Pálsson as the new CEO. His experience and knowledge of Icelandic will be a valuable asset to the company.”
Also, CFO Jóhann Gunnar Jóhannsson will take up the position of deputy director concurrent with his role.
