Unilever has ousted chief executive Hein Schumacher after its board lost patience with the pace of his turnaround plan for the London-listed group, replacing him with chief financial officer Fernando Fernandez.

Unilever surprised investors on Tuesday by ousting chief executive Hein Schumacher and replacing him with finance chief Fernando Fernandez, who will focus on speeding up the execution of the consumer group's turnaround strategy.

KEY TAKEAWAYS Unilever said Tuesday that Hein Schumacher is stepping down after less than two years as chief executive of the consumer goods giant.Schumacher will be replaced by CFO Fernando Fernandez,