Nestlé on Monday added to the list of potential candidates to succeed Peter Brabeck as chief executive with the surprise appointment of a former top Procter & Gamble manager as its next chief financial officer.

The choice of Paul Polman, a 49-year-old Dutchman who until June headed P&G’s European operations, came unexpectedly. Equally surprising was the announcement that Wolfgang Reichenberger, Nestlé’s existing CFO, would step aside from January to run a new venture capital fund for the group.