At the same time, the market research giant has announced Christoph Erbenich has been appointed to the newly created role of chief marketing and innovation officer. He will be a member of the executive leadership team reporting to CEO, Peter Feld.

Feld said: “In hiring Christoph Erbenich, we are adding a digital thought leader and high class marketing professional to our team.

“He can draw on excellent knowledge in digital business and brand development, both in B2B and with B2C companies. He will help us understand our customers even better than before and transform GfK into an agile and digital company.”

Erbenich has previously held management positions at L’Oréal and Procter & Gamble, as well as being chief marketing officer at digital maps provider Nokia Here, and a partner at McKinsey & Company where he focused on digital transformation and new business model development.

Feld will assume interim responsibility for Hausruckinger’s role.