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Global consumer goods leader the Swiss conglomerate announced it will eliminate 16,000 roles within the coming 24 months, as the recently appointed chief executive Philipp Navratil pushes a strategy to concentrate on products offering the “greatest profit margins”.

The Swiss company needs to “change faster” to keep pace with a dynamic global environment and implement a “achievement-focused approach” that does not accept ceding ground to competitors, according to the CEO.

He replaced ex-chief executive Laurent Freixe, who was dismissed in the ninth month.

These workforce reductions were disclosed on the fourth weekday as Nestlé shared stronger revenue numbers for the first three-quarters of the current year, with higher sales across its key product lines, such as beverages and confectionery.

The world's largest packaged food and drink firm, this industry leader owns numerous product lines, like Nescafé, KitKat and Maggi.

Nestlé aims to remove 12,000 white collar jobs in addition to 4,000 additional positions company-wide over the coming 24 months, it stated officially.

The lay-offs will cut costs by the corporation around 1bn SFr (£940m) each year as a component of an sustained expense reduction program, it stated.

Nestlé's share price increased seven and a half percent shortly after its performance report and layoff announcement were announced.

Nestlé's leader stated: “We are fostering a organizational ethos that welcomes a performance mindset, that refuses to tolerate market share declines, and where winning is rewarded... Global dynamics are shifting, and we must adapt more rapidly.”

The restructuring would include “tough but required choices to reduce headcount,” he said.

Equity analyst an industry specialist said the announcement suggested that the new CEO aims to “increase openness to sectors that were previously more opaque in Nestlé's cost-saving plans.”

The job cuts, she said, are likely an effort to “reset expectations and rebuild investor confidence through concrete measures.”

Mr Navratil's predecessor was sacked by Nestlé in the beginning of the ninth month following a probe into reports from staff that he did not disclose a romantic relationship with a junior employee.

The company's outgoing chair the ex-chairman brought forward his exit timeline and stepped down in the same month.

Sources indicated at the period that stakeholders blamed the outgoing leader for the company's ongoing problems.

Last year, an inquiry found infant nutrition items from the company marketed in low- and middle-income countries included unhealthily high levels of sugar.

The study, carried out by advocacy groups, found that in numerous instances, the identical items marketed in developed nations had no extra sugars.

• The corporation operates hundreds of labels worldwide.
• Layoffs will impact 16,000 workers during the coming 24 months.
• Expense cuts are estimated to amount to one billion Swiss francs each year.
• Equity climbed significantly after the news.