Schumacher defended his approach and record as CEO and said he regretted leaving Unilever earlier than anticipated.

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.

Unilever Plc pushed out CEO Hein Schumacher after less than two years, signaling that the board wasn’t satisfied with the pace of restructuring at the maker of Hellmann’s mayonnaise and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.